Elderly woman loses ₹19.24 cr after four months of ‘digital arrest’ in Maharashtra

The CBI registered a case against unidentified members of a suspected inter-state cyber fraud syndicate that allegedly trapped the woman.

MUMBAI: A 75-year-old woman was allegedly coerced into parting with assets worth ₹19.24 crore during a four-month-long “digital arrest” carried out by frauds posing as government officials.

Investigators said the frauds impersonated officials from multiple government agencies. (Representative Image)

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday registered a case against unidentified members of a suspected inter-state cyber fraud syndicate that allegedly trapped the woman in a web of fear, deception and relentless online surveillance.

Investigators said the frauds impersonated officials from multiple government agencies, including the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), police and public prosecutors, to convince the victim that she was under investigation for serious offences including money laundering and violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

According to the complaint, the ordeal began on the afternoon of March 15, 2024, when the woman received a threatening call from a stranger. Within minutes, she was bombarded with a barrage of calls, WhatsApp video calls and messages from several individuals claiming to be government officers.

A look at how the woman was duped (HT)

What followed, investigators say, was a carefully choreographed intimidation campaign. The callers allegedly warned the woman that abusive and offensive SMS messages were being sent from her registered mobile number and that she was under scrutiny. Soon after, the accusations escalated dramatically, the frauds claimed she was linked to a money-laundering racket and that the ED had registered a case against her.

To make the threat appear real, the accused sent her what appeared to be an official document announcing an ED probe. The document bore a fabricated letterhead reading “DIRECTORATE OF ENFORCEMENT FOREIGN EXCHANGE MANAGEMENT ACT (FEMA) & PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING ACT (PMLA) GOVERNMENT OF INDIA.”

Investigators say the frauds identified themselves using multiple fake identities, including ‘Jyoti Vishwanath from the DoT’, ‘police sub-inspector Mohan Singh’, ‘public prosecutors Deepak Saini and Venkateshwar’, and ‘notary officer Pawan Kumar’.

Under mounting pressure, the victim was allegedly forced to remain constantly available on video calls, effectively placing her under what the fraudsters described as a “digital arrest”. She was warned not to disconnect calls or reveal the “investigation” to anyone, with the callers claiming that a person in civilian clothes was already monitoring her movements.

Once they had gained her trust and compliance, the frauds demanded full disclosure of her financial assets, including her house, gold jewellery, investments and bank accounts.

Over the next several weeks, the elderly woman was allegedly coerced into liquidating her assets, breaking fixed deposits, selling her residential property and stocks, pledging gold kept in lockers and even taking loans against jewellery.

The proceeds were then transferred through banking channels to multiple bank accounts allegedly provided by the frauds under the guise of complying with ED instructions.

Investigators said the victim eventually transferred a staggering ₹19.24 crore. To sustain the deception, the accused later sent her a forged document titled “Financial Supervisionary Freezing Certificate”, again bearing the fabricated ED letterhead, claiming the money had been frozen pending completion of the probe and would be returned later.

But the promised refund never came.

After months of intimidation and mounting doubts, the woman finally realised she had been duped. On July 16 last year, she broke free from the so-called “digital arrest” and approached the Gandhinagar police in Gujarat, which registered a case five days later against unknown persons.

Given the complex nature of cyber fraud networks, often involving multiple mule bank accounts, fake SIM cards and operatives spread across states, the case was subsequently transferred to the CBI for investigation.

Investigators are now tracking the bank accounts that received the funds in an attempt to identify the ultimate beneficiaries of the crime.

Rapidly growing cybercrime targeting senior citizens

Authorities say the case reflects a rapidly growing cybercrime trend known as “digital arrest”.

In such scams, frauds impersonate law-enforcement agencies such as the CBI, police or narcotics bureau and frighten victims into believing they are under serious investigation. Victims are kept isolated through continuous video calls and pressured into transferring money as “security deposits” or “settlements”.

Officials said nearly 200 such “digital arrest” cases were reported across the country in 2025 alone, with losses exceeding ₹300 crore.

The Enforcement Directorate has repeatedly warned the public that it does not conduct “digital arrests” or online detentions. Summons issued by the agency can be verified through QR codes printed on the documents or through the agency’s official website.