Berhampur: Cyber criminals have duped Berhampur University Vice Chancellor Prof Geetanjali Dash of Rs14 lakh by impersonating an Enforcement Directorate (ED) official and issuing her a threat of ‘digital arrest’.
The criminals then deceived her into transferring Rs14 lakh from her bank account. The matter came to light after a complaint was filed at Berhampur Cyber Police Station that registered a case 15/25 and launched an investigation, Berhampur SP Saravana Vivek M said. According to reports, Dash received a phone call from an unknown number February 12. The caller introduced himself as an ED officer and falsely claimed that her name was linked to an ongoing money-laundering investigation.
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He further said that an illegal account had been opened in her name at Canara Bank, where huge sums of black money had been deposited. The imposter then informed her that she had been placed under “digital arrest” and could only clear her name by paying Rs14 lakh. Fearing trouble, Dash issued a cheque and transferred the amount to the fraudster’s account.
Later, realising that she had been scammed, Dash reported the matter to the police. Efforts to contact her for further comments were unsuccessful. The police are currently investigating the case and tracking the scammers.
PNN
