Ghaziabad: Senior-citizen loses ₹5 lakh to cybercriminals

Gang of unidentified cybercriminals, posing as police officers extorted ₹5 lakh from a retired 75-year-old man by putting him in fear that the police arrested his son in a rape case lodged by a woman from Mumbai and would be freed from all charges if the amount is transferred to several accounts.

The officials of the cybercrime police station said they have registered an FIR after the senior citizen, a resident of a high-rise near Kavi Nagar, approached the Ghaziabad police for help on Monday after losing ₹5 lakh in process.

The complainant said he received a call in the afternoon of May 25 and the caller introduced himself as an officer from the Ghaziabad police.

“He told me that my son was arrested in connection with a rape case. He also said that the complainant woman is from Mumbai and the police have come from Mumbai to make the arrest... The caller also told me that if I could arrange ₹5 lakh and transfer the money to some bank accounts, my son would be let off,” the man said in the FIR.

“Since I had no money readily available with me, I called up my relatives and friends and got the money transferred to six different accounts as directed by the caller,” he said.

The police said the man also tried to call his son but the call did not go through.

“That made him think that the son was probably arrested. But his son had only gone to Noida on work. When he returned and the matter was clarified, the man realised that he had been duped. Complainant’s son had no connection with Mumbai. So, based on his complaint, we registered an FIR under IPC sections and investigation is underway,” said Santosh Tiwari, in-charge of cybercrime police station.

The FIR was registered on Monday under IPC sections 170 (personating a public servant), 384 (extortion), 420 (cheating), 506 (criminal intimidation) and also under provisions of the Information Technology Act.