Mumbai cyber police have arrested six people in a major alleged digital arrest fraud that cost a 68-year-old retired professional ₹1.12 crore. The case came to light after the victim’s daughter found out about the fraud and contacted the police.
The arrests include an IIT Delhi graduate, a private bank operations manager and four other people. Police say the accused had different roles in the money trail. Their alleged work included the use of mule bank accounts, supply of active SIM cards, access to mobile phones and withdrawal or transfer of the stolen money.
The victim, who lives in Dahisar, was targeted during July and August. For about two weeks, the fraudsters made him believe that he faced a serious criminal case. They used fake officials, false documents and threats to keep him under pressure.
The first phone call
The fraud began with a phone call from a person who claimed to be from a telecom authority. The caller told the 68-year-old that his Aadhaar card had been misused.
The caller then said the matter would be transferred to the crime branch. Soon after, another person joined the case and posed as a police officer named Vijay Khanna.
Khanna allegedly told the victim that a criminal case had been registered against him in Delhi. The claim was that his name had been linked to the misuse of SIM cards.
The fraudsters then added another serious charge. They told the victim that copies of his Aadhaar and PAN cards had been found during a raid linked to money laundering.
This created fear that he could face arrest and public shame.
Fake police calls and documents
The fraudsters did not stop at phone calls. They used WhatsApp video calls to make the story appear real.
During one such call, the victim saw a police logo on the screen. The people on the call acted as if they were part of an official investigation.
They also sent fake documents through WhatsApp. One document carried the words “Govt Affairs, Supreme Court of India” on its letterhead, according to the police account reported by The Times of India.
The use of official-looking names, logos and documents appears to have made the false case seem real to the victim.
The fraudsters also asked him about his wealth. They then told him to liquidate his fixed deposits and transfer his money.
The victim was kept under fear
The scam relied on more than false information. The accused allegedly kept the retired professional under constant pressure.
He was told to report his location every two hours. He was also warned not to tell his family about the case.
The fraudsters allegedly told him that if he spoke to his family, they too could face arrest.
This type of pressure is a key part of many so-called digital arrest scams. The victim is made to believe that police or another government agency has placed him under a virtual form of custody.
In reality, there is no legal process called a “digital arrest” in which a police officer can keep a person under arrest through a video call and demand money for an investigation.
₹1.12 crore was transferred
Under the pressure, the victim transferred a total of ₹1.12 crore, according to investigators.
The fraud continued for around two weeks before his daughter discovered what had happened.
When the daughter confronted the situation, the person who posed as Vijay Khanna allegedly challenged the family to approach the police.
The family then contacted the cybercrime helpline. An FIR was registered at the North Cyber Police station.
This gave investigators the chance to trace the money rather than only focus on the fake calls.
Police follow the money trail
The investigation was led under DCP Bajrang Bansode. Senior inspector Pramod Kamble and inspector Sunil Lokhande were part of the team that examined the financial trail.
A major clue came from one of the accounts that received the victim’s money.
Part of the ₹1.12 crore had reached the bank account of a gold trading firm. Police then examined the mobile numbers linked to that account.
The numbers belonged to two directors of the firm. Investigators found that the SIM cards linked to those numbers were with a man named Tariq Momin.
Momin was arrested.
Police suspect that Momin helped arrange mule bank accounts. A mule account is a bank account used to receive and move money for another person, often to hide the real source of the funds.
Role of the gold trading firm
One of the directors of the gold trading firm, Rakesh Jain, was also arrested.
According to investigators, Momin put the two SIM cards into two new handsets. He then gave those handsets to Shakar Tyagi, an operations manager at a private bank.
The phones had an important role in the alleged fraud. They were used to receive one-time passwords, or OTPs.
An OTP can provide access or approval for certain banking actions. Control of a registered mobile number can therefore become very useful to criminals who want to move money from an account.
IIT graduate also arrested
Police also arrested G Gohel, an IIT Delhi graduate and web developer.
Investigators allege that Gohel and Tyagi helped provide access to the handsets to other people involved in the fraud.
The police report states that Gohel has a BE degree from IIT Delhi. It also says that he had been booked in a separate cheating case by Bandra police in 2021. That earlier case is separate from the present ₹1.12 crore investigation.
His arrest in the present case is based on the police allegations and investigation. The allegations will be subject to the legal process.
The money moved beyond Mumbai
The investigation also took police outside Maharashtra.
The handset linked to Jain’s SIM card was allegedly given to Chintan Desai. According to police, Desai first flew from Mumbai to Delhi and then travelled to Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh.
The money that had reached the gold trading firm’s account was then partly withdrawn. Some of it was also transferred to other mule accounts from Bijnor, police said.
Desai was arrested along with Tyagi, Gohel and another accused, Ajay Sharma. Together with Momin and Jain, this brought the total number of arrests to six.
Why the case matters
The case shows how a digital arrest fraud can involve several people with different tasks.
One person may make the first call. Another may pose as a police officer. Others may arrange SIM cards, bank accounts or phones. Someone else may handle OTPs, cash withdrawals or further transfers.
This structure can make it harder for investigators to identify the people who control the entire operation.
The Mumbai case also shows that such fraud does not always depend on one simple bank transfer. The money can pass through several accounts and locations before investigators trace its path.
A serious warning for senior citizens
The case is also a warning about the tactics used against older people.
Fraudsters often use the names of police, telecom authorities, courts and financial agencies to create fear. They may show fake documents or use video calls with official-looking backgrounds.
The most important fact is simple: a genuine police officer or government official will not place a person under a “digital arrest” and demand money for verification.
Anyone who receives such a call should avoid transferring money or sharing OTPs, bank details, passwords or identity documents. The person should end the call and contact the relevant authority through an official number.
In this case, the fraud continued for about two weeks before the victim’s family found out. The eventual complaint allowed Mumbai cyber police to trace the ₹1.12 crore trail and make six arrests.
The investigation is still based on police allegations, and further details about the wider network may emerge as the case proceeds.
