India News | UP: Agra Police Arrests 2 in 'digital Arrest' Case, Reveals International Money Transfer Link
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. Agra Police on Monday claimed a major breakthrough in a "digital arrest" case, arresting two suspects from Rajasthan who were involved in extorting money through this cybercrime, an official said.
Agra (UP), Feb 17 (PTI) Agra Police on Monday claimed a major breakthrough in a "digital arrest" case, arresting two suspects from Rajasthan who were involved in extorting money through this cybercrime, an official said.
The investigators have also discovered that the scammed money was transferred abroad.
The accused had posed as a police officer and coerced a woman into transferring money under the fear of legal consequences.
Digital arrest is a growing cybercrime where fraudsters pose as law enforcement officials and falsely accuse the victims of crimes like drug smuggling or money laundering.
They use intimidation tactics to convince victims that they are under "digital arrest" and demand money to "resolve" the case. Under fear, the victims comply and transfer large sums of money to the fraudsters' accounts.
The latest case here emerged when Agra resident Nijhat Khatoon received a phone call on January 16. The caller introduced himself as a police officer and falsely accused her of being involved in drug smuggling and money laundering. Khatoon was told that she could escape the case by paying a certain amount, according to officials.
Fearing legal trouble, she transferred Rs 2.8 lakh into the account provided by the caller. On January 20, she filed a complaint at the Cyber Police Station, they said.
"We have arrested Arif and Divyansh, both residents of Kota, Rajasthan. Divyansh is a manager at a private bank and had helped Arif open a bank account. These were the accounts where Nijhat Khatoon's money was transferred," said DCP City Suraj Rai.
The police found during its investigation that the scammed money was also sent abroad.
"This digital arrest scam involves multiple people and our teams are actively tracking them. More arrests will be made soon," Rai added.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)