Bengaluru’s largest digital-arrest scam: Woman techie held for 6 months, loses Rs 32 cr in 187 transactions

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A 57-year-old woman from Indiranagar, Bengaluru, was cheated of Rs 31.83 crore over six months, making it the largest amount lost by a single victim to the ‘digital arrest’ scam in Karnataka.

The victim, a senior IT professional, was trapped, threatened and manipulated by cybercriminals who kept her under constant digital surveillance, even during hospitalisation, until they suddenly vanished in March 2025.

How fake courier call turned into nightmare

The scam began on September 15, 2024, when the woman received a call from someone posing as an employee of DHL. The caller claimed that a suspicious parcel in her name had arrived at the company’s Mumbai office. The package allegedly contained credit cards, multiple passports and banned MDMA drugs.

When she said she lived in Bengaluru and had no connection to the courier, the caller claimed it could be a cybercrime since her phone number was linked to the package. She was asked to report the matter to the cybercrime cell. Before she could respond, the call was transferred to a person posing as a CBI officer.

The woman later told police she went through “a horrifying experience filled with threats and fear.” The fraudsters warned her not to approach local police or seek legal help, claiming powerful criminals were watching her.

They even threatened to harm her family if she informed anyone. With her son’s wedding approaching, she panicked and followed their instructions.

Months of digital ‘house arrest’

The criminals forced her into a digital house arrest, demanding that she stay on a Skype video call with her camera on. A man pretending to be CBI officer Pradeep Singh assigned another man, Rahul Yadav, to “monitor” her for a week. During this period, she continued working from home while staying constantly connected to the scammers.

On September 23, she was taken to a hotel for questioning over Skype and instructed to submit a full declaration of her assets for “verification” by the RBI’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).

During her house arrest, she made 187 transactions, adding up to Rs 31.83 crore. The fraudsters promised her that the money would be returned after verification by February 2025. They even sent her a fake “clearance certificate” on December 1, shortly before her son’s engagement.

Soon after, she fell ill and required hospitalisation. She was still compelled to report daily updates over Skype. The ordeal continued for months, with repeated delays and constant intimidation. The scammers finally cut all contact on March 26.

The woman filed a complaint on November 14, telling the police that she delayed reporting because she was in shock, was busy with her son’s June wedding and had also travelled abroad. She said she later fell ill for nearly a month, which further delayed her complaint.

The East Cybercrime Police have now registered an FIR and begun tracing the long chain of transactions. A senior officer said the case is likely to be transferred to the CID, given the sum lost is over Rs 3 crore.

“If only she had informed someone or cut the call earlier, she would have been safe,” the officer was quoted by DH as saying.