A 57-year-old woman in Bengaluru was allegedly cheated of more than ₹2.05 crore after cybercriminals impersonated law enforcement officials and placed her under a so-called “digital arrest”, police said on Tuesday.
Police explained that a digital arrest scam involves fraudsters posing as police or other officials and threatening victims over phone or video calls, coercing them into transferring money online. The alleged fraud unfolded over several months, between June 19 and November 27.
According to the complaint, the woman received a call on June 19, 2025, from an unknown number. The caller claimed to be from the Blue Dart courier company and alleged that a parcel linked to her Aadhaar card contained drugs. She was warned that the Mumbai Police would arrest her.
Soon after, the caller instructed her to install an app and began contacting her through frequent video calls. For nearly a week, the accused monitored her continuously via video and WhatsApp calls, the FIR stated.
During these calls, the accused appeared wearing police uniforms and claimed to be officers of the rank of inspector and deputy commissioner of police. Police said they used multiple mobile numbers to contact her and repeatedly demanded money.
The woman was allegedly threatened that her son’s life would be in danger if she failed to comply. Fearing arrest and harm to her family, she sold two plots in Malur at a low price, sold her apartment in Vignan Nagar, and also took a loan from a private bank to raise the money.
The FIR stated that from June 20 onwards, she transferred a total of Rs 2,05,16,652 to the accused.
The scam came to light when the accused later asked her to visit a police station to obtain a ‘no-objection certificate’ and assured her that the entire amount would be returned. It was only then that she realised she had been cheated.
Based on her complaint, the Whitefield CEN crime police registered a case on November 27 under Sections 319(2) (cheating by personation) and 318(4) (cheating) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the Information Technology Act. Further investigation is under way.
Karnataka has reported losses of Rs 5,473.97 crore across 57,733 cybercrime cases over the past three years, though only 11.5 per cent of the amount has been recovered. On average, the state lost Rs 6.05 crore every day to cybercrime, while daily recoveries stood at just Rs 60 lakh.
Data shows that in 2023, victims had a one-in-five chance of recovering some of the lost money. By 2025, this has dropped sharply to just one in 16.
(With inputs from PTI)
