Bengaluru-based MNC exec loses Rs 51 lakh in ‘digital arrest’ scam that lasted 10 hours – Times of India

A high-ranking executive at a multinational company (MNC) in Bengaluru was subjected to a 10-hour “digital arrest” scam, resulting in a financial loss of Rs 51 lakh. The victim, a product marketing head, was tricked into believing that they were under investigation by law enforcement agencies.

What exactly happened

The victim revealed that she received a call from the scammers around 9.50 am on September 17 claiming to be from FedEx.Following the caller’s instructions to press 9, she spoke to a person who identified themselves as Ashwin Kumar from FedEx customer care. Kumar informed her that someone had used her Aadhaar details to send a parcel containing MDMA to Iran, which had been seized by the Mumbai police.
The caller transferred the call, claiming it was to the Mumbai cybercrime department. A person named Pradeep, who identified themselves as a senior inspector, spoke to her about the drug consignment. The victim overheard someone else informing Pradeep that her Aadhaar card had been used for illegal activities in Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal, and Karnataka.
“I was then asked to come on a Skype call. A person introducing himself as DCP Milind Bharambe, Maharashtra, said illegal accounts have been opened across the country using my Aadhaar and Rs 9.7 crore have been moved through these accounts. He said the account was used for drug trafficking, money laundering, and funding sleeper cells to purchase AK-47 rifles,” the victim told TOI.
The victim was instructed to maintain confidentiality and told that they were under digital house arrest. The call was then transferred to a person who identified themselves as George Mathew from the Reserve Bank of India. Mathew informed the victim that the RBI would investigate their account and that even a single rupee of black money could lead to seven years in prison.
Mathew instructed the victim to open her bank mobile app and add eight beneficiaries. He then asked her to go to the pre-approved loan section and send him a screenshot. The scammers discovered that she was eligible for a ₹50 lakh pre-approved loan and instructed her to click on it, claiming the money would be used for the investigation. The victim followed their instructions, and her account was credited with the Rs 49,92,921 loan. The fraudsters quickly transferred this amount, along with other money in her account, totalling Rs 51.2 lakh, to the newly added beneficiaries.
The ordeal lasted ten hours, during which the victim was denied food and water. When she later contacted the fraudsters to inquire about the promised refund, they did not respond. Realising she had been scammed, she immediately called the cyber helpline 1930.