Retired senior citizen in Ahmedabad duped of ₹39 lakh in ‘digital arrest’ scam

A 78-year-old retired resident of Naranpura has complained to the Cyber Crime Branch alleging that he was cheated of ₹38.94 lakh by conmen posing as officers of the CBI, crime branch and Supreme Court of India. They tricked him into believing he was under 'digital arrest' in a ₹457-crore money laundering probe linked to Jet Airways.

The complainant, Suresh Govindlal Bhavsar, stated that between August 18 and September 1, he was repeatedly contacted over WhatsApp calls from unknown numbers by men identifying themselves as 'CBI officer Devi Lal Singh' and 'Pawar Saheb' of the Mumbai Crime Branch.

The fraudsters accused Bhavsar of opening a fake Aadhaar card and bank account that had allegedly been used in a ₹457-crore laundering case involving Jet Airways owner Naresh Goyal. They threatened him with arrest and imprisonment unless he cooperated in their 'investigation'.

The accused, dressed in fake police uniforms during video calls, even staged a virtual courtroom scene claiming it to be from the Delhi High Court, where a ‘judge’ instructed that Bhavsar, as a senior citizen, would not be arrested but must assist the inquiry.

Under pressure, Bhavsar and his wife liquidated their investments, sold shares, and even mortgaged jewellery to raise funds. Over a fortnight, they made a series of RTGS transfers to multiple bank accounts across Yes Bank, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank, Saraswat Bank, and Indian Bank, amounting to ₹38.94 lakh

The FIR notes that the fraudsters issued fake letters purportedly from the Supreme Court of India, directing him to deposit the money into specific accounts. On some occasions, they demanded details of his gold jewellery and instructed him to take a gold loan to meet their demands.

The fraud came to light after Bhavsar confided in a friend, who alerted him that such 'digital arrests' did not exist. They then contacted the cybercrime helpline 1930, following which an FIR was registered.

Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch has taken up the investigation. Offences under cheating, forgery, impersonation and criminal conspiracy have been invoked.

A senior cybercrime official said, “Fraudsters are now misusing new techniques such as digital arrests, fake video calls, and forged court documents to target senior citizens. We urge the public not to respond to such calls and immediately contact the cyber helpline.”