Four nabbed for Rs 44.50L ‘digital arrest’ fraud

The Delhi Police have arrested four cyber fraudsters for allegedly duping a man of Rs 44.50 lakh under the guise of ‘digital arrest’ by posing as CBI officers, officials said on Sunday. The scam came to light when the victim, Virender Kumar Indora, a resident of Mayur Vihar, Phase 1, lodged a police complaint on January 29.

“In his complaint, Indora said he received a call from a man posing as a CBI officer, falsely accusing him of involvement in criminal activities. Threatening legal action, the fraudsters coerced him to transfer Rs 44.50 lakh to avoid arrest,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (East), Abhishek Dhania, said.

Digital arrest is a cybercrime wherein scammers pose as law enforcement officers to falsely accuse people of breaking the law and force them into paying money or disclosing personal information.

During probe, a forensic audit of bank accounts revealed that Rs 38 lakh was transferred to a private bank in the name of Dinesh Singadhiya, a resident of Jaipur. The funds were subsequently withdrawn via cheque from the bank, the DCP said.

Acting on the inputs, a police team conducted a raid in Jaipur on March 5, leading to the arrest of Dinesh Singadhiya.

During interrogation, Singadhiya disclosed the involvement of five other people in the scam. Based on his disclosures, Prashant Verma, who helped set up the fraudulent bank account, was arrested.

Further investigation led to the arrest of Prakash Choudhary, a key player linked to Mahesh Nehra, the mastermind behind the operation who allegedly maintained direct contact with international cybercriminals, the DCP said.

Choudhary assisted Nehra in laundering the scammed funds by communicating with mule account providers through social media.

On Saturday, the police arrested a person named Gajender Kumar from his rented accommodation at Kuchaman City in Rajasthan for assisting Singadhiya in withdrawing Rs 38 lakh from the bank.

The police also recovered four mobile phones used for coordinating the gang’s illegal activities. The probe revealed that the arrested persons were in touch with international scammers who orchestrated similar frauds across India, the DCP said.

Their primary role was to facilitate the transfer of defrauded funds through bank withdrawals using cheques and ATMs before passing them on to their foreign handlers.

The officer said Dinesh Singadhiya (26) was a DJ helper and daily wage worker from Jaipur. Prashant Verma (24), also from Jaipur, worked as a DJ, while Prakash Choudhary (21) was a college dropout from the same city.