Daijiworld Media Network – Puttur
Puttur, Oct 12: A man from Puttur taluk was duped of Rs 1.31 crore in a sophisticated 'digital arrest' cyber fraud by scammers posing as Mumbai Police and Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) officers.
According to the complaint, the fraudsters contacted the victim and falsely accused him of transferring funds to the perpetrators of the Pahalgam massacre. By instilling the fear of an imminent arrest, they placed him under a 'digital arrest' and subjected him to continuous threats and intimidation via WhatsApp video calls.
Under the pretext of verifying his bank accounts and confirming his funds, the fake officials instructed the victim to transfer money to various bank accounts via RTGS. Believing their claims to be genuine, the panicked victim transferred a staggering Rs 1,31,50,000 in multiple installments between September 2 and October 6.
Upon eventually realizing that he had fallen prey to a massive cyber scam, the victim contacted the national cyber helpline 1930 to report the fraud.
Based on his complaint, a case has been registered at the Cyber Crime Police Station (CCPS), Dakshina Kannada (Crime No. 42/2026), under sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the IT Act, along with sections 126(2), 204, 308(6), 318(4), 319(2), and 351 R/W 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Further investigation into the network of scammers is currently underway.