New Delhi: Delhi Police have arrested three men from Rajasthan in connection with a ‘digital arrest’ scam that resulted in an 80-year-old retired government official losing his entire life savings of Rs 42.49 lakh.
The accused have been identified as Mahendra Kumar Vaishnav (37), Vishal Kumar (25), and Shyam Das (25). According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Aditya Gautam, the trio provided their bank accounts to a cybercrime syndicate that posed as enforcement agencies.
The gang would impersonate officials from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) or Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), falsely accusing victims of money laundering or financial crimes. Under psychological pressure and fear, the elderly victim transferred Rs 42.49 lakh to accounts controlled by the syndicate.
During investigation, police tracked eight bank accounts used as the initial channels to launder the stolen funds. A significant amount was found to have been deposited into an account operated in the name of Mahendra Kumar Vaishnav.
Further inquiry revealed that the accused either sold or rented their bank accounts to the syndicate for around Rs 10,000 per account per month.
“They handed over cheque books, ATM cards, SIM cards, and internet banking details to their handlers, allowing seamless fund transfers across multiple cities to avoid detection,” DCP Gautam stated.
The police have launched a wider investigation to trace other individuals linked to the racket and recover the stolen funds.
