Pramesh S Jain
In one of the biggest cyber frauds reported in recent months,a senior executive of an IT company in Bengaluru was cheated of nearly Rs.31.83 crore by a gang posing as officials from DHL,the Cyber Crime Department,CBI and RBI in a meticulously orchestrated “digital arrest”scam.
According to the complaint,the victim received a call on 15 September 2024,claiming to be from DHL,alleging that a parcel booked in his name at the Andheri DHL centre in Mumbai contained prohibited items including credit cards,passports and MDMA.
When the victim denied any connection,he was told his identity had been misused and the matter would be transferred to the cybercrime division.
The call was then diverted to individuals posing as officers of the CBI,who threatened him with arrest, claiming that all evidence pointed to his involvement.
They warned him against approaching local police or disclosing the matter to anyone,saying his family’s safety could be at risk as“criminals were watching him”.
Fearing repercussions,especially with her son’s wedding approaching,the executive complied.He was instructed to install Skype IDs and stay connected on video,with scammers keeping him under“digital house arrest”for days.
The impersonators,identifying themselves as“CBI officers”Mohit Handa and Pradeep Singh,coerced him to prove his innocence by“verifying” his assets with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the RBI.
The complainant was shown forged documents and claimed the gang even accessed his income tax filings, lending credibility to the ruse.
He was told to transfer 90% of his assets,and over several weeks—from 24 September to 22 October 2024—he submitted details and transferred huge sums after receiving fake letters purportedly signed by “Nitin Patel” from the Cybercrime Department.
The scammers continued to demand more money, citing new guidelines,sureties and tax requirements.
From 24 October to 3 November, the victim paid an additional ₹2 crore as surety.Another ₹2.4 crore was transferred as “tax” until 18 November.
On 1 December 2024,the victim received a fabricated “clearance letter”and,believing the ordeal was over, went ahead with her son’s engagement.
However,he continued to be monitored by the fraudsters over Skype and was repeatedly promised that his money would be returned after “procedural clearances”.The last contact from the gang was on 26 March 2025, after which communication abruptly stopped.
In total,the victim made 187 transactions amounting to ₹31.83 crore from his HDFC Bank account (ITPL branch).The fraud was executed using.
She approached police only after recovering from severe physical and mental distress caused by prolonged intimidation and after her son’s wedding .
The police are now trying to track down the accused based on financial transactions and also the process freezing the accounts where money was transferred.
