Santosh Kumar, a 45-year-old resident of Udupi, was duped out of Rs89 lakh in an elaborate online scam. The fraudsters, posing as police officers and telecom regulators, manipulated Kumar into believing he was implicated in criminal activities, resulting in a financial loss.
According to the complaint filed at the Udupi Cyber Crime Police Station, the incident unfolded on September 11, when Kumar received a call from someone claiming to be a representative of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The scammer informed Kumar that his mobile number was linked to illegal advertisements and obscene messages, leading to multiple FIRs being filed against him.
The situation escalated when another person, dressed in a police uniform, made a WhatsApp video call, pretending to be a Mumbai police officer. The impersonator informed Kumar that he faced arrest unless he transferred a significant sum of money to a specified bank account to resolve the matter. Fearing arrest, Kumar complied and sent Rs89 lakh to the account provided.
