A 67-year-old woman in Mumbai allegedly lost Rs 61 lakh after a caller posing as a senior National Investigation Agency officer accused her of funding terrorist activities and threatened her with arrest, according to a report by Times of India. Khar police have registered a first information report and are investigating the case.
The woman received a video call on October 1 from a person who claimed to be a DIG-rank NIA officer based in Colaba. The caller allegedly told her that an FIR had been registered against her at Andheri and that an arrest warrant had been issued.
The fraudster then sent the woman a video showing four people described as policemen beating an individual. He allegedly claimed that the person in the video had also funded terrorist activities, using the footage to convince her that she faced a serious criminal case.
The caller also told the woman that he had her Aadhaar number. According to the report, he instructed her not to discuss the matter with anyone or leave her home. The restrictions appear to have been used to isolate her while the alleged financial transfers were being demanded.
The caller allegedly continued asking her for money and told her to mortgage her gold jewellery to obtain a gold loan. The woman subsequently transferred Rs 61 lakh to the fraudster, the report said.
She informed her daughter about the incident on October 14. The daughter realised that her mother had been deceived, after which they approached the police. Khar police then registered an FIR and began probing the transactions and the identity of the caller.
The case reflects the operational features of digital arrest frauds: criminals impersonate law-enforcement officials, invoke serious allegations, display fabricated or intimidating material, and use threats of arrest to prevent victims from seeking help. In this instance, the alleged use of an NIA identity, a supposed case in Andheri and the reference to the woman’s Aadhaar details were central to the intimidation described in the complaint.
The reported demand for a gold loan also shows how such fraud can move beyond money already available in a bank account. The victim was allegedly pressured to convert personal assets into cash while being instructed to remain isolated from family members.
The police investigation will now focus on the caller, the accounts that received the money and the sequence of transactions. The report does not state whether any arrests have been made or whether the transferred funds have been recovered. Khar police are continuing their probe into the case.
