A Juhu-based builder lost Rs 2.5 crore in a ‘drugs-in-courier’ cyber fraud where fraudsters posing as CBI and cyber crime police officers threatened to arrest him in a narcotics and extortion case.
The 64-year-old complainant lives in Juhu with his wife and two children. He retired after suffering from a paralysis attack.
According to the complaint registered by him at the cyber crime police station on June 13, he received a phone call on April 4 from the representative of a courier service company informing him that a parcel was sent from Mumbai to Thailand in his name. He was informed some clothes, passport, laptop, credit card and 40 grams of mephedrone (MD) drugs have been found from the parcel.
The executive further told the complainant that the parcel was booked in his name and Rs 15,625 courier fee was also paid, said police. While the complainant said he has not booked any parcel, the executive transferred the call to a ‘cyber police’ officer.
According to police, the officer identified himself as Rajat Patel from Mumbai cyber crime branch and started questioning the complainant saying that someone has misused the complainant’s personal documents and that it has become a very common fraud practice recently, hence the inquiry is being conducted.
Patel asked the complainant to speak to him via Skype. After calling the app id, the complainant saw the name and logo of Mumbai cyber crime on the Skype ID and trusted them.
Patel later told the complainant that he was involved in financial irregularities and told him that a senior officer from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Mohit Mehra would contact him on Skype ID. An officer from Mehta’s team called him and collected his bank account details.
The officer told the complainant that using forged documents, an unknown person had opened accounts in his name in various banks and deposited crores of rupees obtained via extortion, the FIR states.
On the pretext of checking the transaction details of the complainant’s bank account, the officer asked the complainant to transfer money in a given bank account for verification purpose and that the amount would be refunded back to him.
As directed, the complainant transferred around Rs 2.5 crore in the given bank account. A letter acknowledging the payment was also sent to the complainant.
Four days later, the complainant was sent a confirmation letter stating that he has been exonerated from all charges. But, the ‘officer’ asked the complainant to pay Rs 30 lakh more as security deposit, after which the complainant would be refunded all his money.
The complainant refused to pay and demanded his money be returned as early as possible, but in vain. This is when the complainant realised that he was cheated. He then appaoched the Mumbai cyber police and filed a complaint.
Police are obtaining details of the beneficiary bank account holders to trace the money flow, said another police source.
