Fake money laundering threat: Senior citizen loses Rs. 1.38 crore

Mysore/Mysuru: In a shocking case of cyber fraud, a 66-year-old resident of Kuvempunagar in the city was duped of over Rs. 1.38 crore by cybercriminals who falsely implicated him in a fabricated money laundering investigation.

The fraudsters claimed that the victim’s identity documents had been recovered from the residence of Naresh Goyal, an accused in a money laundering case, and were allegedly used for illegal activities.

The incident began on Nov. 2, when the elderly man received a phone call from an individual posing as an officer from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The caller alleged that the victim’s mobile number had been used for unlawful activities and threatened to block all his phone numbers.

Subsequently, the victim received a video call from another person identifying himself as a Sub-Inspector, who claimed to have received a complaint regarding identity misuse.

Misuse of Aadhaar, bank account details

A third caller, also via video, introduced himself as the Investigating Officer and informed the victim that his Aadhaar and bank account details had been used in financial crimes.

He further claimed that the victim’s Aadhaar and ATM cards were recovered during a raid at Naresh Goyal’s residence and that a criminal case had been registered against him.

The caller instructed the victim to share copies of his Aadhaar and ATM cards and warned him not to disclose the matter to anyone, citing it as a “national security case.” Convinced that his documents had indeed been misused, the elderly man complied.

The fraudsters escalated the deception by claiming that an arrest warrant and a fund-freezing order had been issued against him. They assured the victim that, as a senior citizen, his case would be prioritised and handled like a Court inquiry, even falsely stating that a week-long custodial remand had been ordered.

Under the pretext of conducting a formal investigation, the scammers collected property details and ultimately coerced the victim into transferring Rs. 1,38,90,000 from his bank account.

Realising later that he had been conned, the victim approached the city’s Cyber, Economic and Narcotics (CEN) Crime Police Station and lodged a complaint.