The Delhi Police arrested a cyber fraudster who allegedly duped an IIT Delhi student of Rs 4.33 lakh by placing him under digital arrest. The accused, identified as Madan Lal (29), was traced to Chennai and taken into custody.
"On November 16 of last year, a fourth-year engineering student at IIT Delhi received a call from someone claiming to be from a courier service. The caller falsely informed him that a suspicious parcel in his name was being shipped from Mumbai to Beijing. When the student denied any knowledge of the parcel, the caller advised him to report the issue to the police and transferred the call to an alleged officer at Gamdevi Police Station, Mumbai," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southwest) Surendra Choudhary said in a press statement. He further mentioned that the fraudsters impersonating police and Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials, accused the student of being involved in criminal activities.
They threatened him with arrest, claiming a warrant had been issued in his name. Exploiting his fear, the scammers coerced him into transferring money to various bank accounts to prove his innocence.
The victim transferred Rs 4.33 lakh from November 16 to November 18 through multiple online transactions. "When he later realized he had been deceived, he lodged a police complaint. An FIR was registered, and further investigation was taken up," said the DCP.
