Trapped in ‘digital arrest’, Bengaluru techie sells flat and plots to pay fake cops 

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In yet another shocking case of cyber fraud in Bengaluru, a software professional was allegedly trapped in a “digital arrest" and cheated of nearly Rs 2 crore.

According to a report by NDTV, the victim, Babita Das, was forced to sell her flat and two residential plots to meet their demands. As per the report, she was working with a software company and living with her 10-year-old son in a flat in Vignan Nagar.

In June, she received a call from a man posing as a courier official, who claimed that a suspicious consignment linked to her Aadhaar card had been seized.

The call was then diverted to individuals claiming to be officers of the Mumbai Police. They threatened her with arrest, ordered her not to step out of her home until verification was completed, and kept her under constant pressure.

The fraudsters allegedly made her install a specific mobile application and warned that her son would face serious consequences if she failed to cooperate.

Fearing for her child’s safety and future, the tech professional complied with the fraudsters’ instructions. She sold two residential plots in Malur at distress prices and later disposed of her Vignan Nagar flat as well.

The proceeds from the property sales were transferred to bank accounts provided by the scammers. She also took a bank loan and transferred the amount to them.

In total,  Das was cheated of around ₹2 crore.

The fraudsters later instructed her to visit a nearby police station to recover the money, before abruptly disconnecting the calls. Their phones were subsequently switched off.

She has since lodged a complaint with the Whitefield Cyber Crime Police Station, following which police have launched an investigation into the “digital arrest” scam.