(MENAFN- Live Mint) A 57-year-old Bengaluru woman was cheated out of a whopping ₹32 crore by cyber criminals and kept under“digital arrest” for nearly six months after being told that a package booked under her name contained“prohibited items”.

The ordeal began on September 15, 2024, when the victim received a call from someone claiming to be from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The caller alleged that a parcel booked under her name from Andheri, Mumbai, contained four passports, three credit cards, MDMA, and other prohibited items.

The woman, a software engineer, denied having travelled to Mumbai, but the fraudsters insisted that her identity had been misused.

Why did she believe the fraudsters?

The Bengaluru resident repeatedly stated that the parcel had nothing to do with her, but before she could disconnect, her call was transferred to another person claiming to be a“CBI officer”. He warned her that the matter could be linked to“cybercrime” and that there was“evidence against” her.

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The caller then instructed her not to inform anyone - including the police - claiming that criminals were monitoring her home. Fearing for her family's safety and her son's upcoming engagement, the woman complied, not realising the trouble she was walking into.

How did the criminals gain her trust?

She was told to create two Skype IDs and remain on continuous video calls until the platform was shut down in May this year. A man identifying himself as Mohit Handa monitored her for two days, followed by Rahul Yadav, who kept watch for a week. A third impersonator, Pradeep Singh, posed as a senior CBI officer and pressured her to“prove her innocence”.

Between September 24 and October 22 last year, the woman disclosed her financial details and began transferring large sums of money. From October 24 to November 3, she deposited what she was told was a“surety amount” of ₹2 crore, followed by payments described as“taxes”.

Acting under the fraudsters' instructions, the victim broke her fixed deposits, liquidated her savings, and transferred ₹31.83 crore across 187 transactions. She was repeatedly assured that the money would be returned after“verification” by February 2025. The scammers also promised to issue a clearance letter before her son's engagement in December and sent her a fake document.

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The continuous pressure, threats, and surveillance left her mentally and physically drained. She required a month of medical treatment to recover.

“All this time I had to report over Skype where I was and what I was doing. Pradeep Singh was in touch daily. I was told that the money would be returned by February 25 after the completion of all procedures,” she told news agency PTI.

After December, the fraudsters continued demanding“processing charges”, repeatedly pushing the promised refund from February to March. A few days later, all communication from their side suddenly stopped.

The woman waited until after her son's wedding in June before approaching the police to file a complaint.

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“In total, through 187 transactions, I stand deprived of approximately ₹31.83 crore,” she said in her complaint, urging the authorities to carry out a thorough investigation.

Police have now launched a probe into what appears to be a highly sophisticated fraud racket.

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