How Noida family fell prey to 5-day digital arrest and lost Rs 1 crore

Over the next five days, Paliwal, his wife and their daughter, who live in a three-storey house they own in Sector 19, were placed under “cyber arrest” and forced to transfer over Rs 1 crore to different bank accounts. On February 6, the septuagenarian approached the Noida Cyber Police for help.

Noida Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber Crime) Preeti Yadav said Paliwal, a retired insurance official, arrived at the police station around 3 pm to get an FIR registered. “He told us that a group of unknown fraudsters had forced him to transfer Rs 1.1 crore from his account to theirs,’’ she said.

The police went on to register a case of extortion and cheating under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act.

In his complaint, Paliwal said that nearly 10 minutes after he received the first call around 2.50 pm on February 1, a “senior police officer” called him. “He said he was an IPS officer with the Greater Mumbai Police. He claimed that there were 24 cases against me, including a case of money laundering. He claimed to be the investigating officer in the case,” he added.

The accused “informed” Paliwal that a bank account had been opened in his name to launder money. “He said a few complainants had received a call from a number issued against my Aadhaar Card and that they had been tricked into depositing money into the account. He said a warrant had been issued in my name, and that I would be arrested and presented before the Mumbai Cyber Crime cell,” Paliwal told the police.

Next, the police said, Paliwal was asked to show his Aadhaar Card “for verification” over a WhatsApp video call. “I was trembling as I sent them a photo of my Aadhaar Card. They also asked me for details of my personal bank accounts, which I supplied,” the complaint said.

“They said that an initial investigation report had been sent to the CBI and that senior CBI officers would now investigate the case. Another imposter joined the ongoing video call to say that it would be impossible for a man my age to stay in jail… One of the imposters then confirmed that (Paliwal’s) Aadhaar Card had been used to launder money and that the case would now go to the CBI court,” it added.

A series of video calls from various numbers continued over the next few days, police said, quoting Paliwal. “Next, the imposters posed as CBI officers and told me that my case would be heard in a CBI court on February 3. They asked me for my wife and daughter’s contact details. They also warned me against answering any other call and sharing information about their calls with others since my case was linked to Naresh Goyal’s case,” Paliwal said in his complaint.

The Enforcement Directorate had arrested Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal on September 1, 2023, on charges of money laundering.

On February 2, 2024, the police said, the fraudsters warned Paliwal that his family would be arrested and put in different jails in Mumbai. “…They (wife and daughter) too were threatened in a similar way. Some other accused posed as Noida Police officer and said that they were under surveillance,” Paliwal told the police.

In the video call received by Paliwal, his wife and daughter on February 3, the accused used the backdrop of “a court”. “A man posing as a CBI judge asked me to turn the phone camera toward me. He told me that I was Goyal’s associate and that my bail plea had been rejected. The accused even sent me my bail rejection orders,” said Paliwal in the complaint.

Next, the victims were asked to visit their bank and withdraw all the money from their accounts to “avoid arrest”. “On February 4, my wife and I transferred the money to the imposters via RTGS from the bank. They were on a video call with us the whole time. The next day, they asked for more money. That is when the branch manager told us to seek help,” the complaint said.

Inspector Vinod Yadav, who is investigating the case, said, “They have not been socialising with neighbours. They hardly left the house since the incident. The couple has only one daughter who lives with them.’’

“It is a tragic incident… The fraudsters seem to have done proper research before targeting this family, as they typically chose elderly people with limited social contact,” he added.