Noida: 92-year-old man loses ₹1.02 crore to cyber frauds

The victim alleged that he got trapped after receiving a call on August 26 from a person impersonating a telecom executive that led to fraudsters later contacting him on WhatsApp

Noida: A 92-year-old retired professor in Noida Sector 30 allegedly put under five-day “digital arrest”, ended up losing ₹1.02 crore, police said on Wednesday, adding that a case was registered at the Cybercrime Branch police station on Tuesday.

Claiming to be CBI officers, the frauds allegedly put him under digital arrest on the pretext of an investigation, and made him transfer his savings to their suggested bank accounts, said police. (Representational image)

The victim alleged that he got trapped after receiving a call on August 26 from a person impersonating a telecom executive that led to fraudsters later contacting him on WhatsApp.

“I started receiving multiple WhatsApp calls from unknown numbers accusing me of being involved in money laundering,” the victim alleged in the first information report (FIR).

Claiming to be CBI officers, the frauds allegedly put him under digital arrest on the pretext of an investigation, and made him transfer his savings to their suggested bank accounts, said police.

“I was contacted by someone claiming to be the CBI director, who compelled me to transfer money for the purported investigation, assuring that it would be returned within 23 days. I was strictly instructed not to disclose it to anyone, including my family,” reads the FIR.

Cybercrime Branch SHO Ranjeet Singh said that it was when the victim’s nephew, residing on the upper floor of the same home, noticed that the man was upset and enquired the reason, the elderly man revealed the “ordeal”, and realised to have been duped.

The victim reported about the August 26 to September 1 incident to the National Cyber Reporting Portal on Monday, and a case under sections for cheating, cheating by personation, and extortion of the BNS and IT Act was registered at the Cybercrime Branch police station, police said, adding that efforts are on to recover the money.