The fraudsters allegedly forced the victim to transfer money several times on the pretext of account verification and the investigation process.

Hyderabad: A Hyderabad couple were placed under digital arrest for four months and lost Rs 64 lakh after cyber fraudsters posed as police officials and claimed that the victims were being interrogated in connection with the Pahalgam terror attack.

According to cybercrime police, the 71-year-old victim is a retired government employee who received a call from the fraudsters regarding an outstanding credit card bill. When the victim denied owning a credit card, he received a WhatsApp call from a person impersonating an IPS officer.

The caller claimed that the victim’s name had surfaced during an investigation into a person identified as Sandeep Kumar in connection with the Pahalgam terror attack case and that a case had been registered against him

The fraudsters also called the victim and shared details of his grandson, who resides in the United States, along with his granddaughter’s daily commute route. This made the victim believe that the callers were genuine police officers.

Cashing in on the victim’s fear, the fraudsters told the couple they were under ‘digital arrest’ and threatened to implicate their family members in a drug case if they failed to comply with their instructions.The fraudsters allegedly forced the victim to transfer money several times on the pretext of account verification and the investigation process.After four months, the victim realised he had been duped and approached the police, filing a complaint. Based on the complaint, an investigation has been initiated.