19-year-old held for carrying out 'digital arrest'

UTTARAKHAND Special Task Force (STF) has arrested a person from Jaipur in a case of "digital arrest" in which a Dehradun resident was allegedly duped of ₹22.7 million (£213,601), police said on Monday (20).

A 19-year-old youth was found to be the main accused who was arrested from Jaipur on Saturday, STF Senior Superintendent of Police Navneet Singh said here.

According to police, Neeraj Bhatt was a member of a cybercriminal gang. He allegedly posed as an officer of the Cyber ​​Crime Department of Mumbai Police.

The victim, a resident of Niranjanpur area, Dehradun, lodged a complaint regarding the matter a few days ago, the SSP said.

In the complaint, the victim said on September 9, he received a WhatsApp video call, in which a person in police uniform told him that an arrest warrant had been issued in connection with a money laundering case. His bank account had laundered money, the video caller had claimed.

The caller also warned him not to share the information with anyone and added that if he did so, he could go to jail and also have to pay a fine.

The victim said that when he requested the caller to get him out of the case, the cyber fraudster asked him to talk to his higher officials about it and asked him not to go out anywhere during this period.

The caller also asked him to transfer money to clear his name, saying it would be returned within a day or two.

The fraudster also said that the victim's accounts were being monitored throughout.

The victim realised that he was being cheated when the money he transferred never returned as promised, instead he was being asked to send more, the victim said in his complaint.

The SSP said police took the help of concerned banks and service providers to get information about the accounts and mobile numbers used in the incident.

Using data analysis and technical and digital evidence, the main accused involved in the incident was identified, he said.

Cases of "digital arrest" have become so rampant that prime minister Narendra Modi had in his monthly ‘Mann ki Baat’ broadcast in October expressed concern and urged the public to be on their guard. (PTI)