Civic Mirror Bureau | Pune: In a shocking case of cyber fraud, a 76-year-old woman from Karvenagar was duped of ₹21.65 lakh by a conman impersonating a police inspector. The fraudster convinced her that her Aadhaar card had been misused in a money laundering case and that she could be arrested if she didn’t cooperate. The woman, fearing legal trouble, liquidated all her fixed deposits and transferred the entire amount to eight bank accounts provided by the fraudster.
An FIR has been registered against the unidentified cyber criminal at Alankar Police Station based on the woman’s complaint.
According to the police, the victim received a phone call from a man claiming to be from the “Department of Criminal Investigation.” He told her that her Aadhaar number had been used by a man named Naresh Goyal for illegal money laundering transactions, and a case had been registered against her. The caller then pretended to connect her call to the Panchavati Police Station in Nashik, where another man identified himself as Police Inspector Pise.
The impersonator asked detailed personal questions, including who stayed with her at home, and told her that she would be helped out of the case only if she followed instructions and didn’t tell anyone.
The next day, the woman received a video call from a man dressed in a police uniform, again claiming to be Inspector Pise. He said an investigation was underway and asked for details of her bank accounts and fixed deposits. Under pressure and fear, the woman broke all her FDs and transferred the money to multiple bank accounts as instructed.
When she later asked when her money would be returned, the fraudster told her it would be refunded after the “investigation” was completed. Suspecting something was wrong, she shared the incident with a known acquaintance, who immediately identified it as a scam. She then approached Alankar Police Station, where an FIR was registered.
Police have launched an investigation and appealed to citizens, especially senior citizens, to be cautious and never share financial details over phone calls from unknown persons claiming to be officials.
