Chennai Police refund Rs 52.6 lakh to 72-year-old victim of Rs 4.67 cr digital arrest scam
The police have so far arrested 15 persons for their alleged involvement in the crime in which the elderly woman lost Rs 4.67 crore five months ago.
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CHENNAI: The city police’s cybercrime wing has facilitated the retrieval of Rs 52.68 lakh for the 72-year-old victim of digital arrest fraud.
The police have so far arrested 15 persons for their alleged involvement in the crime in which the elderly woman lost Rs 4.67 crore five months ago.
The victim, a retired engineer and a resident of Abhiramapuram, received a phone call in September 2024. Claiming that her cell phone connection will be disabled in two hours, the callers asked her to press 09 for more information.
“As her cell phone number is linked to Aadhaar, bank accounts, gas cylinder connection, insurance, etc., she dialled 09. A scammer then told her that multiple fraudulent bank accounts opened in her name were involved in illegal Hawala transactions, with cases registered in Mumbai and Delhi,” according to an official release.
The call was then transferred to someone impersonating the Mumbai police, who falsely alleged that customs had seized a parcel in her name containing illegal drugs, a fake passport, ATM cards, and tiger skin.
Threatening arrest, they insisted she appear at the Mumbai cybercrime police station within two hours. As she pleaded innocence, the fraudsters offered a ‘remote investigation’ via video call, instructing her to stay isolated under ‘digital arrest’ and convinced her to transfer all her savings and fixed deposits, amounting to Rs 4.67 crore, to an alleged RBI account for verification.
Investigations led the city police to Chennai-based fraudsters, from Villivakkam and Triplicane, who laundered the stolen amount abroad through hawala, converting it to USDT crypto currency via the Binance trading app.
On Wednesday, police handed over Rs 52.68 lakh to the victim as per court orders.
