Delhi man under ‘digital arrest' duped of Rs 14 lakh, 3 cyber fraudsters held from Rajasthan

Indian Express

2 days ago

The Delhi Police on Wednesday arrested three cyber fraudsters who allegedly posed as Crime Branch officials and extorted Rs 14 lakh from an individual, who was placed under 'digital arrest', and blackmailed with his nude photos.
The three accused — Vasim, 30, and Javed, 48, and Khalid — were arrested from their residences in Rajasthan's Mewar region, the Delhi Police said.
The police said that the racket came to light when the complainant approached the Delhi Police, claiming that he had been duped by fraudsters who recorded his nudes on a WhatsApp call.
'During the call, an obscene video of a girl started playing, and she manipulated the complainant into getting nude, subsequently recording his video. The complainant, later, received three obscene videos of himself, which had been recorded by the fraudster,' Vichitra Veer, Deputy Commissioner of Police, West, said.
The victim told the police that a man claiming to be from the Crime Branch then contacted him over WhatsApp and told him that the girl he had talked to was a minor and that his phone was tracked by the police.
To get away with the 'crime', the caller asked the complainant to pay Rs 1.5 lakh initially and then called him twice to blackmail him into giving an additional Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 4 lakh. The complainant gave in to the demand.
'The complainant stated that the fraudster called again and threatened that the girl had committed suicide and that the complainant would be arrested. He further demanded ₹6 lakh for 'settling' the case, which the complainant also transferred,' DCP Veer said.
After losing Rs 14 lakh, the complainant approached the cyber police station.
Investigators traced the accounts to which the money was transferred, leading them to Mewat, a known cybercrime hub. Following this, the police raided the houses of Vasim and Javed in the Deeg district of Rajasthan and arrested them. During interrogation, Vasim revealed that Khalid had recorded the nude videos and impersonated a Crime Branch officer.
'A raid was conducted at Khalid's residence, and he was apprehended too,' DCP Veer said.
All three men were formally arrested on Wednesday after questioning. A police officer noted that typically, users of mule accounts are unaware of the main suspects in digital arrest schemes; they are usually tasked with siphoning off money from the account and transferring it to another.
'However, in this case, the suspects knew each other as they were all working together. This facilitated to nab the main accused swiftly,' the officer said.