Increasing danger! Retired DGP digitally arrested, duped
Gurugram: 80-year-old Anil Prakash Bhatnagar, retired DGP (Prison) from Punjab, was duped by cyber thugs posing as a customs officer. He was digitally arrested for about two hours. When he revealed his identity and requested for some relief, he was asked to deposit Rs 2.5 lakh in his account. He was assured that if he is found innocent in the investigation, this amount will be deposited back in his account.
On the morning of September 5, retired DGP Bhatnagar received a call. The caller identified himself as Sumedh Mishra, an officer of the Customs Department. He told Bhatnagar that he had sent a parcel from Delhi to Wang Zhang area of Malaysia last year. 16 fake passports, 58 ATM cards and 140 grams of narcotics were found in this parcel. The caller gave him a mobile number and asked him to call Vasant Kunj Police Station in Delhi. When the DGP called on that number, he was told that he was being investigated for drug and human trafficking. He was digitally arrested. He was told that his account was in HDFC Bank, where the money earned from illegal activities was transferred.
During the digital arrest, Ajit Srivastava called himself a special officer of the CBI. When the old man told him that he was a retired DGP, he should be given some relief. The caller told Bhatnagar that he was accused of a heinous crime. Deposit Rs 2.5 lakh. This amount will be returned if he is found innocent.
According to the information received from Gurugram Police, till now cyber thugs have digitally arrested 120 people of Gurugram and committed fraud of about Rs 2 crore. These thugs commit fraud by claiming themselves to be officers of Delhi, Mumbai and CBI. Such calls are made from Pakistan, China. Callers commit cyber fraud by wearing police uniform and scaring people.
Digital house arrest is a new method of cyber crime, in which scammers threaten the victim on video calls and imprison him at home. Along with this, they harass him so much that he is forced to pay money.
Cyber Crime Police Station Incharge Naveen Kumar, “There is no provision like digital arrest in the law. Do not panic due to such calls. The account in which the DGP had deposited the amount has been frozen.”
