Digital arrest: Timely alert helps freeze retired banker’s Rs 85 lakh in Hyderabad | Hyderabad News

Hyderabad: Posing as National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials, cyber fraudsters duped an 82-year-old retired banker from Neredmet of Rs 85.2 lakh. However, Telangana Cyber Security Bureau (TGCSB) sleuths acted swiftly on his complaint and froze the entire amount in the fraudsters’ bank account.The victim received a call on Aug 20 from a man identifying himself as Abhinav Sharma from Mumbai, who claimed his Aadhaar had been misused in a money-laundering case. He was later contacted on a video call by another fraudster in khaki uniform, posing as an NIA inspector named Anil.Threatening to arrest him, the fraudsters obtained details of his bank deposits and instructed him to keep the “investigation” confidential.“On Aug 21, a third person, claiming to be an additional director general, told me to transfer my savings to a specified account as proof of my non-involvement in money laundering. I was assured the money would be returned after RBI verification within three days,” the complainant told the police.Believing them, the victim transferred Rs 85.3 lakh from his Central Bank of India account to an IDFC First Bank account. He was then asked to prematurely close fixed deposits worth Rs 40 lakh at a co-operative bank in Neredmet and transfer the proceeds to the same account.Bank officials became suspicious and alerted a family member, who also has an account in the same bank. After the victim disclosed the calls, the bank officials helped him report the fraud through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP).“Acting swiftly, our officers followed the money trail and froze the suspect account maintained with IDFC Bank’s Coimbatore branch. The entire Rs 85.2 lakh transferred by the victim was secured,” TGCSB director Shikha Goel said.Malkajgiri cyber crime police registered a case on Tuesday under relevant sections of the BNS and IT Act.Goel reiterated that police, NIA, CBI or RBI officials never ask people to transfer money for verification. She urged people to report suspicious calls immediately through the 1930 cybercrime helpline or NCRP.