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India Probes Expanding 'Digital Arrest' and Trading-App Scams as Police Trace Cross-Border, Crypto Money Flows

Police describe syndicates that coerce transfers with forged notices, stage video calls to simulate arrests, then move money via mule accounts, cryptocurrency.

Overview

  • MAHARASHTRA CYBER, probing a Rs 58 crore case in Mumbai, reports links to Hong Kong, China and Indonesia with funds routed through multiple crypto wallets and commission-based bank accounts.
  • Mumbai Police say they raided a fake international call centre in Mulund, arresting five and seizing devices and cash during an operation targeting loan-related phishing on overseas victims.
  • Pune City Cyber Police registered an FIR after a 62-year-old retiree was duped of about Rs 99 lakh through a fabricated arrest warrant bearing a forged signature of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
  • A 60-year-old Mumbai businessman was kept on an overnight video call in a staged ‘online hearing’ and coerced into transferring Rs 53 lakh; the Central Region Cyber Police have opened a case.
  • New FIRs also detail investment-app frauds, including a Bengaluru man losing over Rs 1.29 crore after contact on a dating app and a Mumbai consultant allegedly cheated of Rs 9.94 crore via the AR Trade Mobi platform.