Chandigarh: Threatened with digital arrest, 91-yr-old retired Colonel loses ₹36L

Complainant Harmohinder Singh Puri got a WhatsApp call on November 10, 2024 wherein the caller claimed that the his Aadhaar Card had been seized during a raid and that a non-bailable arrest warrant had been issued against him

A 91-year-old retired colonel of Sector 34-C has been defrauded of ₹36 lakh by cybercriminals who posed as officers from the Mumbai crime branch. The fraudsters created a fake narrative, linking the victim to a money laundering case and coercing him into transferring the sum.

Fearing arrest and eager to prove his innocence, Puri followed accused’s instructions and transferred ₹36,00,000 via RTGS from his State Bank of India account to an ICICI Bank account. (Shutterstock)

Complainant Harmohinder Singh Puri approached the cyber crime police station in Sector 17, stating that he received a WhatsApp call on November 10, 2024. The caller claimed that a fake Canara Bank account had been opened in his name in Maharashtra. He alleged that the account was used to transfer money to Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal, who is under investigation in connection with a scam, the complainant stated.

The caller further claimed that the victim’s Aadhaar card had been seized during a raid and that a non-bailable arrest warrant had been issued against him. To avoid arrest, Puri was instructed to stay on the video call throughout the night and was psychologically manipulated into revealing his financial holdings.

Fearing arrest and eager to prove his innocence, Puri followed their instructions and transferred ₹36,00,000 via RTGS from his State Bank of India account to an ICICI Bank account. He also sent a photo of the transaction receipt via WhatsApp to the fraudsters.

The accused continued to pressure him to transfer additional funds — ₹12.5 lakh from Union Bank of India and ₹20 lakh from his post office savings — but before those transactions could be completed, his son Pushpinder Singh, who had just returned from Australia, sensed a foul play. He visited the Sector 34 police station from where he was directed to the cyber crime police station.

Following an inquiry and approval by senior officers, an FIR dated April 20 under Sections 319(2), 318(4), 336(3), 338, 340(2), and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, was registered against unknown persons.

Earlier, a similar modus operandi was used to dupe another senior citizen — 82-year-old retired colonel Dalip Singh — of ₹3.41 crore. Posing as Enforcement Directorate officials, the fraudsters placed him and his wife under digital house arrest for 10 days, using fabricated arrest warrants, to coerce them into transferring their savings.