Mumbai: A 33-year-old communication manager from Malad, employed at Godrej in Vikhroli, allegedly fell victim to cyber fraud, losing ₹6.19 lakh after being under “digital arrest” for over four hours.
The woman was deceived by fraudsters posing as Reserve Bank of India (RBI) officials and Hyderabad police, who falsely accused her of involvement in a money laundering case. The scam began while she was at work and escalated until she was coerced into checking into a hotel.
While the victim filed an FIR on Thursday, the incident occurred on September 23 at around 9:55 a.m. She received a call from an unknown number, with the caller claiming to be from her credit card’s customer care. The caller informed her that her card had been linked to fraudulent activity and instructed her to dial 9 to connect with an “executive,” who identified himself as an official from the RBI.
The impersonated RBI official claimed that a transaction of ₹1.18 lakh had been made from her credit card and demanded she repay the amount. When she denied making such a transaction, the so-called executive stated that it took place in Hyderabad and transferred her call to individuals posing as Hyderabad police, who claimed to be investigating a money laundering case.
After a brief “interrogation” by these individuals, who questioned her whereabouts in April, the call was transferred to alleged Cyber Police officials. They informed her about a man named Naresh Goyal, claiming he had created a bank account in her name. The bogus officers warned her that Goyal had been arrested and that she was the next target in the investigation.
Following several video calls and text messages, the fraudsters coerced her into checking into a hotel, threatening her not to speak to anyone about the case or the calls.
At around 2:30 p.m., the victim checked into a hotel in Vikhroli, where she was informed via WhatsApp video call that she was under “digital arrest” and being monitored. The fraudsters threatened her against attempting to escape and claimed the Supreme Court was involved in the case, stating she needed to pay ₹5 to ₹6 lakh as part of the process. Reluctantly, she agreed, ultimately paying ₹6.91 lakh. When she informed them that she had run out of money and her parents were calling, the fraudsters released her around 6:50 p.m.
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Upon returning home, she told her parents about the incident, who quickly realized it was a scam. The victim then filed an online complaint with the cyber police, which was forwarded to the Vikhroli police for further investigation.