‘Your husband could also be involved’: Cyber extortionists threaten Pune doctor with Rs 82-cr money-laundering claim

The fake cop then warned the doc to keep mum about the issue and sent her a ‘copy of the arrest warrant’ against her. Even though the doctor kept denying her involvement in the matter, the fake cop warned her that she was under surveillance and was being tracked.

The fraudster, on the pretext of verification, then took details of her bank accounts and asked her to liquidate her fixed deposits of over Rs 6 lakhs. When she said she would have to go to the bank for that, she was told to stay on the call constantly for surveillance. When she asked if she could discuss this with her husband, she was told – “your husband could also be involved in crime”, and if she wished to avoid arrest, she should not discuss it with anyone including family.

The doctor was then asked to transfer the liquidated funds to an ‘RBI safe account.’ She was told of a likely threat to her life, and was told to stay on the call so her movement could be monitored. After she transferred over Rs 6 lakh, she was asked to transfer more money “to close the case”. This is when she realised she had been duped and approached the police. A probe has been launched into the case, police said.

Changing tactics

“We have observed more and more disturbing ways and tactics that criminals are employing to psychologically influence victims and exploit their fears and vulnerabilities. They are using fake set-ups of police stations, fake uniforms, fake letters of entities like CBI, Supreme Court, ED etc to make the matter feel real. The biggest card they play is the threat of surveillance and in some cases asking victims to place themselves under house arrest and asking not to talk to anyone,” said an officer from Pune cyber police station.

“These tricks have so much impact on victims that they start believing these fake officers will only help them out of the situation. People should apply basic criterias of cyber safety to their every online transaction and always talk to family and friends if they doubt anything,” said an officer from Cyber police station of Pune police.

Govt advisory

In an advisory issued about such online blackmail cases, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in May said that a large number of complaints are being reported on National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) regarding intimidation, blackmail, extortion and “digital arrests” by cyber criminals posing as officers of law enforcement agencies.

The advisory said that fraudsters are known to use studios modelled on police stations and government offices and wear uniforms to appear genuine. This is an organised online economic crime and is learnt to be operated by cross-border crime syndicates, the advisory read.