A senior citizen from Kothrud allegedly lost Rs 68 lakh after cyber fraudsters posing as government officials and police officers kept her under a so-called digital arrest for eight months, Pune cyber police said.
The fraud took place between March and the first week of October, according to the report. The woman, who lives alone while her children are settled abroad, was contacted by phone and accused of uploading obscene photographs and videos online.
The callers claimed that the Data Protection Board of India was investigating the matter. After the woman denied the allegations, the fraudsters instructed her to obtain a police clearance certificate, police said.
She was then contacted through a video call by a man claiming to be an officer from the Mumbai Crime Branch. He questioned her about her assets and bank accounts before alleging that one of her accounts had been used to launder money for a banned terrorist outfit in Kerala.
The callers further claimed that she had received Rs 20 lakh as commission for circulating obscene content and had used the money to fund terrorist activities. They threatened to arrest her and pressured her to transfer money to avoid legal action.
Under sustained pressure, the woman eventually emptied her savings and transferred a total of Rs 68 lakh to six bank accounts, police said. The report does not identify the account holders or state whether any arrests have been made.
The case shows how the so-called digital arrest tactic combines impersonation, allegations of serious offences and continuous remote communication. By presenting the interaction as an official investigation, the fraudsters reportedly kept the woman engaged for months and used threats of arrest to control her financial decisions.
Inspector Sangeeta Deokate said the complainant lives alone and that her children are settled abroad. Those circumstances formed part of the reported context of the case, although the supplied report does not state whether the accused specifically targeted her based on that information.
The alleged use of government and police identities is central to the fraud. The callers invoked a data protection authority, the Mumbai Crime Branch, alleged money laundering and terrorism-related accusations, and a supposed police clearance process. These claims were used to create the appearance of a formal legal proceeding while demanding immediate financial transfers.
The money was sent to six separate bank accounts, according to cyber police. The supplied report does not provide details of the banks, the transfer dates, the status of the funds or further police action. It also does not establish whether the identities used by the callers corresponded to any real officials.
The report was published by Punekar News on 14 October 2026. The case remains based on the account provided by the complainant and the information attributed to Pune cyber police. No response from the alleged fraudsters or the account holders was included in the supplied report.
