Mangaluru: A 58-year-old woman from the city was duped of ₹1.8 crore after cyber criminals impersonating Mumbai Police officers trapped her in a high-pressure ‘digital arrest’ scam.
According to the complaint filed at the CEN Crime Police Station, the ordeal began on October 24 when she received a call around 2.45 pm from an unknown number. The caller claimed to be from the Colaba Police Station, Mumbai, and falsely accused her of involvement in a money-laundering and human-trafficking case, alleging that she had received commissions and was now a suspect.
Frightened by the serious accusations, the victim was instructed to join a video call to “cooperate with the investigation.” During the call, she was asked to write a letter and send it to the caller via WhatsApp, further deepening the illusion of an official inquiry.
Over the next interactions, two individuals—introducing themselves as police officers Vinod Rathod and Rajesh Mishra—continued questioning her through WhatsApp video calls. They demanded her personal details, bank information, and account balances, convincing her that her accounts needed to be “verified”.
On the following day, the scammers directed her to transfer money for “inspection” and assured that the funds would be returned after verification. They also warned her against sharing any details with anyone, threatening severe legal action if she disobeyed.
Terrified and believing she was under investigation, the woman transferred a total of ₹1.8 crore in multiple instalments via RTGS to several bank accounts between October 28 and November 11.
Realising she had been duped, she reported the matter, and a case has now been registered at the CEN Crime Police Station, which has launched an investigation.
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