MUMBAI: Share your Aadhar Card, banking details, and transfer Rs 98,886 if you do not want to be booked in a case of narcotic drugs and money laundering case.
This was a threatening call that a film production manager received on Thursday after the caller informed her that they were calling from a courier company and a parcel that she had sent was seized by the Mumbai police after they learned about drugs in it. Versova police registered the case on Friday said that the victim, SK Ayushi (25), ended up paying the money after the person threatened to send her to jail if she wasted time in transferring the money which would help in her favour from not filing a first information report (FIR) under the money laundering and narcotics cases.
Ayushi became a victim of the fraud when she was at her Andheri (West) office on October 26. She received a call at around 11.19 am from a person who claimed to be from a courier company informing her that a parcel containing drugs has been seized and the she is sender which the Mumbai police had sealed and the matter was with the Mumbai Narcotic Cell who is going to book her. "This fraud is on the rise where the fraudsters impersonate Mumbai police and dupe people in making them pay money by not arresting and filing a case against them. Details have been sought from the bank to track the accused in whose account the money has been transferred," said a police officer of the Versova police station.
When the victim replied that she had not sent any parcel, the fraudster claimed that such cases were on the rise where people's details were misused to make online orders. In the complaint, Ayushi said: "The caller scared me of getting booked in money laundering and narcotic case. To avoid this, I was asked to download an app and asked to fill in my name, and mobile number. Later, I was asked to upload my Aadhar Card to avoid a criminal case being registered against me. Then I was asked to transfer Rs98,886 to pay a fine to the RBI to avoid my bank account getting freeze within 30 minutes."
A police officer said the victim not only lost the money but also made her share her documents and banking details which the fraudster can misuse. "The victim realised that she was duped when the fraudster asked to share her second bank account details and transfer another Rs98,886. The first money transfer by done through GPay. The team is tracking the money trails to locate the accused," said the officer.
