India witnessed a steep rise in cybercrime last year, with over 1.23 lakh cases reported and losses amounting to ₹1,935 crore. One such case from Gurugram highlights how fraudsters are using fake video call interrogations to scare people into sharing their bank details, allowing scammers to drain their accounts within minutes.
An investigation by The Indian Express uncovered the story of a 44-year-old advertising executive who fell victim to this growing scam. What started in a luxury apartment in NCR quickly expanded to a small house in a Haryana village, then to a rented room on the outskirts of Hyderabad, and finally spread across 15 states. Nearly ₹6 crore was stolen and rapidly moved through 28 bank accounts, followed by 141 more, before disappearing.
The investigation exposed how scammers exploit low-income individuals as “money mules” to move large sums of money—sometimes up to ₹81 lakh within seconds. Many of these individuals had no idea their accounts were being used for fraud. Meanwhile, those responsible for monitoring suspicious transactions either ignored the activity or were involved in the scam. Banks, caught in the middle, have been blaming each other instead of taking action. This is just one example of a much larger and growing problem.
Of all the digital arrest scam victims tracked by The Indian Express, only one has recovered more than 75% of their stolen money. Most others have lost their savings, with little hope of recovering even 10%.
The bigger issue
Digital arrest scams often play out over a day or two. In one case from Gurugram, the scam lasted nearly two days before the victim realised they had been tricked. By the time victims file a complaint—usually after a day—the stolen money has already been moved through multiple mule accounts across different states.
The money is often withdrawn in cash from these accounts before the fraud is even detected. Most mule accounts are opened with fake addresses, making it nearly impossible for police to trace where the money went.
Investigators say the scammers work so fast that catching them is a major challenge. In one instance, nearly ₹3 crore was withdrawn from a mule account within just 29 minutes at an ICICI Bank branch in Jhajjar. But a high-profile case shows that quick action can sometimes help recover the money.
Quick police action helps elderly businessman recover ₹5.27 crore
In November 2024, 82-year-old industrialist S P Oswal, chairman of Vardhman Group, became a victim of a digital arrest scam. He transferred ₹7 crore from his ICICI and HDFC bank accounts in Ludhiana before realising it was a fraud and informing the police, The Indian Express reported.
Thanks to the swift response from authorities, Oswal managed to recover ₹5.27 crore. The money was traced to two State Bank of India (SBI) accounts—₹1.53 crore from Malda, West Bengal, and ₹3.74 crore from Guwahati, Assam.
According to investigating officer Jatinder Singh from Punjab Police, the quick recovery was possible due to support from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Union Home Ministry. I4C’s network of cybercrime officers in banks helped freeze the suspect accounts.
Another factor was that the mule accounts used initially had real, traceable addresses. Oswal contacted his finance officer after two days of being monitored by the scammers on video calls. Once they realised it was a scam, they immediately approached the police.
The suspect accounts were frozen within five hours of the complaint, and two people have been arrested. Investigators found that ₹9.5 crore had passed through the SBI Guwahati branch in just 10 days, including ₹4 crore of Oswal’s money.
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