‘Virtual court of Justice Chandrachud’: Woman duped of Rs 3.71 crore in ‘digital arrest’; Surat garment trader arrested for providing mule account

Miyani then handed over his bank details to the fraudster after withdrawing his commission of Rs 6.40 lakh on the same day when the victim’s money was credited into his account, said a police officer.

The fraudster then transferred the entire amount to another account, and the person who was in touch with him fled abroad, said the police. A senior officer involved in the probe said the police have been gathering details about the other members of the syndicate and will apprehend them.

How the ‘digital arrest’ unfolded

According to the police, the complainant is a resident of Veera Desai Road, Andheri (West). She told the police she received a call from an unknown number claiming to be from the Colaba police station and that the caller disconnected.

Later, she allegedly received a WhatsApp video call, and the caller again claimed to be calling from the Colaba police station. The caller allegedly told her that her Aadhaar card was used to open a Canara Bank account, which was then used for illegal transactions totalling Rs 6 crore.

The fraudster allegedly told her that one Naresh Goyal had been arrested in connection with a money laundering case, in which her name had also been mentioned.

The fraudster allegedly claimed that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was investigating the case, and that if she was innocent, her hearing would be conducted as soon as possible and she would be granted bail. He allegedly said that a judge named Chandrachud would conduct her hearing.

Soon, a person in a black coat appeared on the video call and asked her whether she was involved in a money laundering case, she told the police. When the woman replied that she had done nothing wrong, he allegedly refused her ‘bail’, got up from his chair, and left.

The accused then allegedly demanded that she deposit all her savings for verification. According to the FIR, the woman transferred 3.71 crore from her bank account between August 29 and October 6, per their instructions.

When the accused demanded more money and started giving excuses for not returning her money, she realised she had been duped. The woman approached the cyber police station and submitted all the chats, transactions, screenshots and the bank statements to the police. They verified the facts, registered a case in November, and began an investigation.