Siddarth Sethia
A 58-year-old homemaker from Thanisandra has fallen victim to a cyber fraud involving the increasingly reported “digital arrest”scam,in which fraudsters impersonate themselves as police officers and coerce victims into transferring money under threat of arrest.
The victim,identified as Manju Kumari,lodged a complaint with the East Division Cyber Crime Police on Thursday after she was allegedly tricked into transferring Rs.5 lakh from her bank account.
According to the complaint,the incident began on April 14, 2026, when she received a voice call from mobile number .
The caller introduced himself as an officer from the Mumbai Police and claimed that her documents were linked to a fraudulent case numbered registered against her in Mumbai .
The following day, on April 15, she received a WhatsApp video call from another number, around 9:30 AM.
The fraudsters allegedly forced her to remain on the video call for nearly 3–4 hours, continuously threatening her with immediate arrest and legal action.
Under sustained pressure, the victim was instructed to transfer Rs.5,00,000 from her Bank account to an account held in the name of Govindbhai Gohil .
The accused allegedly claimed that her documents were involved in money laundering, extortion,and other illegal activities.
Police have registered a case and initiated an investigation into the cyber fraud network.
Authorities have once again warned the public against falling prey to such scams, noting that no law enforcement agency conducts investigations or demands money over phone or video calls.
Police advised people to bring it to the notice of the family members or call police if they receive such calls .
