Digital arrest scam: 2 held for extorting Rs 1.16 lakh from Chennai resident
The fraudsters had called the victim and threatened her with digital arrest after they claimed she had received a drug consignment
In yet another digital arrest scam, a 59-year-old woman in Chennai was duped of ₹1.16 lakh.
After the victim realised she had been scammed she approached the Triplicane police, who formed a special team and along withe cyber crime officials finally arrested two men T Venkatesh (42), and Mohammad Yunus (37), in connection with the fraud on Saturday (March 1).
According to the police, the accused have been produced before a magistrate and remanded to judicial custody.
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The scam’s victim
The victim, Rizwana Begum (59) from Triplicane, received a phone call from the fraudsters pretending to be customs officials on February 3. They claimed that she received a drug consignment in her name and shortly after, a man in a police uniform called her via WhatsApp, threatening immediate digital arrest unless she paid a fine.
Rizwana panicked and transferred ₹1.16 lakh in multiple installments to the fraudsters. Eventually she realised that she was scammed and filed a complaint with Triplicane police.
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The Triplicane cyber crime wing tracked the digital trail left by the accused and arrested them. Further investigation revealed that Venkatesh, who hails from Kumbakonam, used to run a manpower agency in Chennai and after it failed his business associate went to Cambodia to work in scam compounds there.
The associate allegedly impersonating officials transferred money into Venkatesh’s account.
Venkatesh and Yunus had also developed a mobile app for these fraudulent activities. The main suspect is absconding, and police are intensifying their search to nab him.
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What is digital arrest?
A ‘digital arrest’ is a cyber scam where fraudsters call up the public and dupe them into thinking that they will be arrested on bogus criminal charges. These charges can also include a friend or family member being ‘arrested’ and requiring money for their bail or to pay a fine for a crime that never happened.
