Tarun Karthick
Campbell Bay, 10 November 2023
A resident of Garacharma, Port Blair, has fallen victim to a sophisticated cyber fraud, resulting in the fraudulent transfer of Rs. 19,93,041/- from her bank account.
In a written complaint addressed to the Superintendent of Police (CID) in Port Blair, the resident has detailed the harrowing sequence of events that unfolded on November 6, 2023. At 11:47 am, she received a call from a number, purportedly from FedEx Mumbai. The caller claimed that a parcel booked under her credentials, containing illegal items, had been intercepted. Subsequently, she was informed that her Aadhar card had been used for the booking.
The caller then alleged that the parcel contained 2 kilograms of clothes, 3 passports, 2 laptops, and 700 grams of MDMA, booked from Mumbai to Taiwan with a payment of Rs. 72,350. The victim vehemently denied any involvement, leading to claims of an already filed FIR (First Information Report) with the Mumbai Crime Branch under section 27 of the NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act.
The situation escalated when the call was transferred to another individual, claiming to be Pradip Sawant, an Inspector from the Crime Branch. Through a Skype call, he presented his identity card and alleged that her Aadhar card was linked to international and national transactions involving cryptocurrencies and illegal money laundering. He also asked soft copy of her aadhaar card which she readily provided. He implicated a person named Mohammed Nawab Mohammed Islam Malik as the culprit, currently incarcerated, who he said was using her Aadhaar Card for illegal activities.
The fraudster also sent her some fake documents from RBI and CBI with her aadhaar number on it. The victim panicked and pleaded with the fraudster that she is innocent.
The fraudster then informed that her aadhaar was linked with 32 bank accounts and those accounts needs to be seized and asked for her account details.
The fraudster then made her speak to another person who he claimed was Deputy Commissioner Cyber Crime. The person introduced himself as Milind Bharambe. He then sent the victim a document that read Consent to terms with Confidentiality Agreement from the CBI India and the victim also got a call asking me to maintain full confidentiality and not to tell anyone about this, because this is a National level Crime.
The fake Deputy Commissioner Cyber Crime then told her that her bank accounts will be seized and asked her to transfer all her money to account numbers given by him, which he said are Govt. RBI bank accounts.
In a series of coercive tactics, the supposed officials coerced the victim into transferring funds to purportedly verify her accounts. After transferring a total of Rs. 19,93,041/- to multiple accounts provided by the fraudsters, the call abruptly ended around 9:00 pm.
Upon realising the deception, the victim filed a formal complaint, urging authorities to take necessary legal action against the cyber fraudsters.