Bhubaneswar: A 26-year-old man from West Bengal has been apprehended for allegedly duping an Odisha man of more than Rs 73 lakh in a ‘digital arrest’ fraud, police said Thursday.
Based on a complaint by a man from Paradip at a cyber crime police station May 15, a team of the Odisha Police Crime Branch arrested the accused, a native of Howrah district in neighbouring West Bengal, Wednesday, a senior officer said.
The complainant said cyber fraudsters called him, impersonating CBI and Delhi Police personnel and said a parcel, booked in his name, had been confiscated by Delhi customs.
According to the Odisha man, he was asked to pay Rs 73.62 lakh to prove himself innocent, and otherwise, legal action would be taken against him.
“Thus, the complainant was put under ‘digital arrest’ and he finally transferred Rs 73.62 lakh to the fraudsters’ account,” the crime branch officer said.
‘Digital arrest’ is a new cyber fraud, where an accused poses as a law enforcement agency official, like a CBI or customs sleuth, and threatens people of arrest by making calls.
The police seized various incriminating articles, including a mobile phone, SIM cards, Aadhar cards and bank accounts of the fraudsters, the officer said.
The CID wing of the Odisha Police appealed to the citizens to be aware of fraudsters impersonating police or judicial officers on social media and messaging apps, and threatening them of ‘digital arrest’.
PTI
