According to authorities, a software engineer aged 52 has reported a loss of Rs 2.24 crore to cyber criminals who impersonated officials from the Delhi Customs and Narcotics Control Bureau. This incident follows closely after a 29-year-old female lawyer from Bengaluru suffered a loss of Rs 14.57 lakh under similar circumstances, where she was coerced into performing acts on a Skype video call.
The method employed by the fraudsters to deceive Kumarasamy Sivakkumar from Jakkur mirrored that experienced by the lawyer. Allegedly, the scammers contacted the engineer multiple times between March 18 and March 27, claiming to represent the Customs Department. They informed him that an air parcel addressed to him and bound for Malaysia was intercepted at Delhi Airport, containing illicit items including 16 passports, 58 bank ATM cards, and 140 grams of Ecstasy tablets (also known as MDMA, a prohibited substance).
Reportedly, the call was then redirected to individuals purporting to be from the ‘Narcotics Control Bureau’, who instructed Sivakkumar to download Skype and connect with them online. Subsequently, the fraudsters demanded monetary transfers to resolve the purported case against him.
Sivakkumar disclosed to law enforcement that he transferred Rs 2.24 crore in eight transactions via Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and Immediate Payment Service (IMPS). He became aware of the scam on April 5 and promptly filed a complaint with the Bengaluru North East Cyber Crime Police Station.
Police sources indicate that approximately 25 individuals have been victimized by similar schemes since the start of the month, resulting in losses exceeding Rs four crore within the jurisdiction of the North East Cyber Crime Police Station. The modus operandi in most cases appears to be consistent.
Read More :
