Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Nov 9: A woman from Mangaluru has reportedly lost Rs 1.16 crore in an elaborate cyber-fraud scheme after being deceived by conmen impersonating senior officers of the Delhi police, CBI, Income Tax department and Enforcement Directorate through WhatsApp video and audio calls.
According to a complaint filed at the Dakshina Kannada Cyber Economic and Narcotics (CEN) police station, the incident began on September 24 when the victim received a WhatsApp video call from a person claiming to be from the department of telecommunications, Delhi.
The caller told her that her Aadhaar and PAN details had been used to obtain a SIM card in Delhi, which was allegedly employed to circulate illegal advertisements and harassment messages. When the woman denied any involvement, the caller said he would ‘transfer the call’ to the Delhi police.
Soon afterwards, another individual appeared on the video call, wearing a police uniform and identifying himself as Vijay Kumar, a ‘Delhi police and CBI officer’. He falsely accused her of links to human trafficking, illegal advertisements and money laundering, claiming that a court had already sentenced her to three months’ imprisonment and ordered the seizure of her bank accounts and properties.
The impostor demanded full disclosure of her bank accounts and assets, warning that she would otherwise be arrested. Fearing legal action, the woman provided the information. She was then instructed to transfer her funds into ‘safe accounts’ supplied by them, allegedly to protect the money from being frozen, with the assurance that it would be returned once the ‘case’ was cleared.
The fraudsters warned her not to speak to anyone, calling it a matter of ‘national security’.
Over the following weeks—from September 25 to October 1 — the men continued contacting her from different WhatsApp numbers and even sent forged notices purporting to be from the Income Tax department and Enforcement Directorate, increasing the pressure.
Terrified, the victim transferred Rs 1.16 crore through multiple transactions between September 29 and October 8 to the accounts provided by the fraudsters.
When she finally realised she had been cheated, she approached the police.
The DK CEN police have registered a case under Sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the Information Technology Act, and under Sections 126(2), 318(4), 319(2), 351(2), 351(2) × 0.308(6) and 204 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Police officials said an investigation is in progress to identify the culprits and recover the defrauded amount.
“This is a classic case of cyber-impersonation using fear tactics,” a senior police officer said. “We urge the public never to share personal or banking information, and to verify any such calls directly with the concerned authorities.”