In Mangaluru, Karnataka, a retired engineer reportedly fell victim to a scam, losing Rs 1.6 crore to fraudsters. The scammers requested ‘caution money’ from the retiree, purportedly to avoid investigation by the central investigative agency, as the police said on Thursday.
According to the reports, individuals impersonating employees of an international courier service deceived the victim by claiming that the package he had sent contained incriminating documents and drugs known to investigative agencies. Purportedly, to avoid legal trouble, they demanded a caution deposit, assuring its return after the investigation. The alleged transactions totalling Rs 1.6 crore took place between May 2 and 6, the police added. The incident was brought to light when the victim confided in his daughter.
Authorities confirmed that a case about the incident has been filed at the Cyber, Economic and Narcotics Crime Police Station in Mangaluru city.
This isn’t the sole instance of individuals falling prey to scam artists. Recently, another case emerged where a woman doctor in Noida was reportedly duped of Rs 45 lakh by cyber frauds. Pretending to be Mumbai crime branch officers via a video call, they coerced her into transferring the money under the guise of investigating her bank accounts, according to the police.
The victim, aged 51, found herself subjected to what authorities term a “digital arrest” by the fraudsters. They effectively confined her movements by monitoring her through a video call, issuing threats of severe repercussions if she attempted to disconnect. In response to her complaint, the police have taken action by registering a case under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code and pertinent provisions of the IT Act.
India has witnessed a surge in cybercrimes, with citizens losing a staggering 7,488.6 crore to such frauds last year, as revealed by the Ministry of Home Affairs during the Interim Budget Session in February. Despite efforts of law enforcement agencies to tackle this escalating issue in the country, Maharashtra emerged with the highest losses at Rs 990.7 crore, closely followed by Telangana at Rs 759.1 crore.
Highlighting the widespread nature of cybercrime across the country, states like Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Gujarat also incurred significant financial losses, with reported amounts reaching Rs 721.1 crore, Rs 661.2 crore, Rs 662.1 crore and 650.5 crore, respectively.
“The ‘National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal’ (https://cybercrime.gov.in) has been launched, as part of the I4C (Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre), to enable the public to report… all types of cyber crimes, with special focus on…women and children,” the ministry said in a written reply.
Comments
0 comment