Durg (Chhattisgarh):
A shocking case of cyber fraud has come to light in Chhattisgarh’s Durg
district, where a family from Bhilai was defrauded of ₹54.90 lakh under
the pretext of a "Digital Arrest". Posing as CBI officers,
the fraudsters falsely accused the family of involvement in ₹2 crore money
laundering, terrifying them into transferring large sums of money over the
span of a month.
The victim, a resident of Pragati Nagar, Risali, identified
as the Chandrakar family, was contacted via video call by individuals
who introduced themselves as CBI officers. The scammers claimed that a member
of the family had sold a Canara Bank account to one Naresh Goyal, who
allegedly used it for money laundering activities worth ₹2 crore. On this
fabricated basis, the family was threatened with a “digital arrest.”
Under pressure and fear, between April 29 and May 29,
2025, the family ended up transferring a total of ₹54.90 lakh to various
accounts provided by the fraudsters. The money was sent in multiple
installments over several days.
The Durg police, after a detailed investigation, have so far
arrested six individuals in connection with the scam. Two of them — Rushikesh
Joshi and Balkaran Joshi, who were involved in using and managing
the fraudulent accounts — were apprehended today from Thane, Maharashtra.
Earlier, Deepak Gupta, Rajesh Vishwakarma, Krishna
Kumar, and Shubham Srivastava were arrested from Lucknow, Uttar
Pradesh, for their roles in the same racket.
Police officials have stated that the investigation is
ongoing and more arrests may follow. The case underscores the growing threat of
cybercrime and the urgent need for public awareness around scams involving fake
government identities and intimidation tactics like “digital arrests.”