Elderly Man Duped of ₹ 66 Lakh; Mule Account Supplier Held
Intimidated by the threats, the victim transferred ₹66 lakh to several mule bank accounts controlled by the gang
Visakhapatnam: The Visakhapatnam cybercrime police have arrested a 40-year-old man from Guntur in connection with a “digital arrest” fraud in which a retired employee was cheated out of ₹66 lakh by fraudsters posing as Mumbai police officials.
The accused, Chaganti Gautam, allegedly opened multiple mule bank accounts and facilitated fraudulent transactions worth around ₹5 crore as part of the racket.
According to police, the victim received a WhatsApp call from a person claiming to be the president of the Depositors Protection Board in Mumbai. The caller alleged that a money laundering case had been registered against the victim at Colaba police station and transferred the call to another individual posing as Maharashtra Police DIG Vikas Sharma.
The impostor threatened the victim, claiming that a Canara Bank account opened in the victim’s name was being used to launder large sums of money and that the Supreme Court had issued an arrest warrant.
Intimidated by the threats, the victim transferred ₹66 lakh to several mule bank accounts controlled by the gang.
Police said Gautam opened the accounts in the names of firms for commission, travelled to Mumbai to facilitate the transactions, and withdrew the funds soon after they were credited.