Three individuals have been arrested by Delhi Police for defrauding a senior citizen of ?25 lakh through a “digital arrest” scam. The arrested accused—Rahul Verma, Shantanu Richoriya, and Arjun Singh—allegedly used a fake identity during a WhatsApp video call to pose as a Crime Branch inspector. The victim, Mahender Jain from Palam Colony, received the call on March 21 and was falsely told that his Aadhaar number was used in a money laundering case involving a major airline. Under pressure and fear, Jain liquidated his savings, sold jewellery, and transferred the money to various unknown accounts.
A case was registered at the Cyber Police Station, South West Delhi, under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The investigation revealed that the fraudsters operated out of Delhi hotels, used fake WhatsApp numbers, and handled mule accounts—bank accounts opened by people across India to facilitate the scam. These accounts were then used to launder the victim’s money to international handlers. Police tracked the money trail and used technical surveillance to identify and apprehend the accused.
During the investigation, Rahul Verma admitted he initially lent his account for scams but later got deeply involved due to the lucrative returns. He then recruited others to open mule accounts. The gang used secret messaging groups, false identities, and international contacts to stay under the radar. Police recovered multiple items from the accused, including phones, SIM cards, and bank documents. Seven to eight mule accounts linked to the group have been identified, and further raids are ongoing to locate more members of the scam network.
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