Ahmedabad: The city police have arrested three men for allegedly defrauding an elderly doctor of over Rs 8 crore through a cyber fraud scheme known as a ‘digital arrest’ scam.

The incident took place between July 28 and August 12 when the doctor, a resident of Paldi, received repeated WhatsApp calls from people pretending to be Mumbai Crime Branch officials. They told him that he was involved in the Jet Airways money laundering case and that Rs 5 lakh had been suspiciously deposited in his Canara Bank account.

The scammers threatened that he would be jailed for 40 days if he didn’t cooperate and asked him not to share details with anyone, saying it would be considered an 'anti-national' act.

Also read- From FDs to House Sale: How a Gujarat doctor lost Rs 19 crore in Digital Arrest Scam

To make their act convincing, they even showed the doctor a fake courtroom on a video call, where actors posed as judges and lawyers. They asked him not to tell anyone about the case, saying it would be treated as an “anti-national” act.

Gradually, the doctor was convinced to sell his shares and transfer the money under the pretext of “legalising funds.” In this way, the fraudsters siphoned off Rs 8.05 crore through RTGS transactions into multiple bank accounts.

When the doctor realised he had been cheated, he approached the Ahmedabad Crime Branch, which began tracking the money trail. Investigations revealed that Rs 80 lakh was moved into a Yes Bank account under the name Balaji Kheeru and Fast Food, operated by one of the accused, Pappu Singh.

Police later arrested Singh and his aide, Asif Shah from Ahmedabad, while another accused, Vikas Kumar, was caught in Palghar, Maharashtra. According to investigators, the trio had been working together for months. While Asif Shah arranged bank accounts on rent, Vikas Kumar handled transactions on commission, often linked to online gaming, ETV Bharat reports.

During the raid, police seized 32 mobile phones, two laptops, PayTM swipe machines, cheque books, debit/credit cards and other material worth ₹2.84 lakh.

Investigators also discovered that Kumar was in touch with a Jharkhand-based man, known online as Alex Monty, who dealt with casino gaming money through Telegram. Further, Singh’s phone had been hacked with a malware link named “Amma Pay,” allowing the scammers to capture OTPs and messages to divert funds.

Police believe the masterminds of this racket are operating from abroad, mainly Cambodia and Singapore. Efforts are on to trace them.

Also read- In 8 days of digital arrest, Elderly doctor loses Rs 3 crore