Uttarakhand Woman Put Under 'Digital Arrest' For 30 Hours, Duped Of Rs 10.5 Lakh

A woman fell victim to an online scam, losing Rs 10.5 lakh and endured a 30-hour-long 'digital arrest'. A probe has been initiated based on a complaint registered at Dalanwala police station.

Dehradun (Uttarakhand):A woman in Dehradun was allegedly duped of Rs 10.5 lakh by cyber thugs, who placed her under digital arrest through video call for 30 hours, claiming that a parcel, containing incriminating items belonging to her, has been found.

The incident took place in Dalanwala police station area. During the fake arrest, the woman was kept confined at her house on the pretext of solving the matter and giving her police clearance certificate. Based on the woman's complaint, a case has been registered against the unknown accused in Dalanwala police station.

According to the complainant, a resident of Model Colony, she received a call on July 31, where the caller claimed to have intercepted a courier, carrying incriminating items, being sent to Thailand by her. The caller said her phone is being transferred to Mumbai Crime Branch and then the woman was connected to some people on a Skype video call.

The woman was interrogated for 30 hours through a video call and the person who was talking to her was in police uniform. The person threatened that she would have to appear before Mumbai Crime Branch in person if she did not provide information as asked.

After the woman answered all questions, the caller said that her documents are being sent to the crime branch. After some time, she received a video call where the caller said that in order to prevent her from getting arrested, she would have to pay Rs 10.50 lakh.

Scared by the call, the woman somehow arranged the money and went to the bank, where she deposited the amount in the account mentioned by the caller.

Dalanwala police station in-charge Manoj Nainwal said on the basis of the victim's complaint, a case has been registered against the unknown accused.

"It has been revealed that the woman had sent a courier a few days ago and her data was stolen by the cyber thugs. The account where complainant deposited the money is in the name of one Chandra International, GT Road, Kanpur. The accused are being searched on the basis of the mobile numbers," Nainwal said.

What is digital arrest?

Digital arrest is a new tactic of online fraud, where cyber criminals take the victims into hostage by informing that a parcel, containing illegal goods, has been sent or they are the intended recipient. The callers pose as officers of the police, CBI, customs or any other agency and threaten of action. The cyber thugs gather prior information about their victims and threaten through video call to arrest them. The victims are held hostage for hours, implicating them in a fabricated money laundering case, and finally lose money.

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