Bengaluru woman techie loses Rs 32 crore in Karnataka’s costliest digital-arrest scam

Bengaluru: A 57-year-old Bengaluru woman was conned out of a staggering Rs 31.83 crore over six months — the largest amount lost by a single victim in Karnataka in the infamous 'digital arrest' scam, police said. 

The victim, a resident of Indiranagar and a "very senior-level IT professional", was placed under constant surveillance by cybercriminals for over six months before they abruptly cut contact, a senior cybercrime investigator told DH. 

On September 15, 2024, she received a call from someone claiming to be from DHL, a courier service. She was told a package in her name — containing three credit cards, four passports and prohibited MDMA drugs — had arrived at the DHL centre in Andheri, Mumbai. 

When she said she lived in Bengaluru and had no connection to the courier, the caller claimed it could be a cybercrime since her phone number was linked to the package. She was asked to report the matter to the cybercrime cell. Before she could respond, the call was transferred to a person posing as a CBI officer. 

"It was a horrifying experience for me, going through their threats," she later told the police. 

The fraudsters warned her against contacting the local police or seeking legal help, saying the "criminals" who had misused her identity were surveilling her. They also threatened to implicate her family if she informed them. 

Fearing repercussions and with her son's wedding approaching, she heeded their demands. 

Over the next few days, she was placed under a so-called "house arrest" via a Skype call with her camera on. Later, a man identifying himself as CBI officer Pradeep Singh assigned another man named Rahul Yadav to "monitor" her for a week. During this time, the victim worked from home. 

On September 23, 2024, Singh questioned her over Skype at a hotel and asked her to declare her assets to the RBI's "Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)". 

According to a senior police officer, the victim broke her fixed deposits and liquidated other savings to transfer Rs 31.83 crore in 187 transactions as per the fraudsters' instructions. She was assured the money would be returned to her after "verification" by February 2025. 

She even received a "clearance certificate" on December 1, 2024, days before her son's engagement. 

The ordeal continued until March 2025, with the perpetrators giving one excuse or another for the delay in clearing the matter before abruptly ending all communication on March 26. Throughout this period, she was threatened, harassed and abused by unknown individuals. 

Based on her complaint, the East Cybercrime Police registered an FIR on November 14. A probe has been launched, and the police are reviewing the transaction trail. 

The victim told the police she delayed filing the complaint because she was in shock,  was occupied with her son's wedding in June and her international travel, and she fell ill for nearly a month. 

"If only she had informed someone or even cut the call, she would've been safe," the senior police officer said, adding that the case will likely be handed over to the CID as the sum lost is over Rs 3 crore.