Doctor held in 22-hour ‘digital arrest' by cyber crooks in Karnataka

Gadag: In a shocking case of cybercrime, Dr. S.C. Chavadi, a private practitioner from Mulagund town in Karnataka’s Gadag district, was trapped in a 22-hour ordeal by a gang of fraudsters pretending to be officials from a national investigative agency.

The incident occurred on June 11, when Dr. Chavadi received a video call at 3:07 PM. The callers, claiming to represent the “National Investigation Authority of India,” falsely accused him of money laundering via a Canara Bank account and stated a criminal case was lodged in his name at a Mumbai police station. Despite having no Canara Bank account, he was told an arrest warrant had been issued.

To make the deception appear legitimate, the gang even flashed the photo of a local Mulagund police officer. Under pressure, Dr. Chavadi was coerced into sharing sensitive financial and property details.

For nearly a full day, he was kept under psychological stress through relentless video calls. A man posing as “Inspector Vijaykumar” warned him to stay quiet, adding that a criminal gang was watching him. Another impostor, calling himself “DCP Dayanayak,” said the case would be escalated to the Supreme Court.

The fraud was exposed when suspicious locals alerted the police. Officers reached Dr. Chavadi’s home and intervened just as the scammers were still on a video call. The fraudsters disconnected and disappeared as soon as a real officer appeared on screen.

Gadag Cyber Crime Police are investigating. CPI Sangamesh Shivayogi advised the public to report such threats immediately and avoid sharing personal information via unknown video calls.

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