Jodhpur retd doc falls prey to ‘digital arrest’, loses ₹87 lakh

Jodhpur: A retired female doctor was digitally arrested for 17 days and scammed of Rs 87 lakh by cyber fraudsters in Jodhpur. The fraudsters posed as customs officers and Mumbai police officials to scam her, claiming that her parcel contained narcotic substances, fake passports and credit cards.
They then scared her with the threat of an arrest warrant and forced her to transfer the money in parts for various purposes.The entire incident took place from Aug 20 to Sept 5. Finally, when the callers stopped calling and responding, she realised that she has been duped and then filed a complaint with the police on Sept 19. Police are investigating the matter.
SHO (Ratanada) Pradeep Danga said that a digital arrest incident occurred with retired female doctor Aruna Solanki (70), a resident of Ratanada.
“In her report, the victim mentioned that on Aug 20, she received a call from someone posing as a customs officer named Pramod Kumar. The caller claimed that a parcel in her name had arrived in Mumbai, which contained narcotic substances, along with several fake passports and credit cards and the matter was reportedly handed over to the Mumbai police. Later, someone posing as Mumbai police officer Sunil Kumar called her, obtained financial details, and executed the fraud,” said Danga.
They kept forcing her to transfer money in their accounts under threats and assured that she will get her money back. Between Aug 20 to Sept 5, they extorted Rs 87 lakh from her beginning with breaking of her FD worth Rs 51 lakh followed by Rs 8 lakh in the name of bail application, Rs 21 lakh in the name of review of her other FDs, Rs 5 lakh in the name of filling ‘No Crime Bond’ and Rs 2 lakh as a fee for the advocate to process the refund.
According to police, the fraudsters obtained information from Solanki about her bank accounts and fixed deposits. After questioning her, they sent four letters, which included an agreement with the CBI, asset seizure documents, an arrest warrant, and case report papers. Seeing these official-looking documents, the doctor became frightened and, out of fear, provided all the necessary details to the fraudsters comprising details of financial transactions of past three years.