Woman loses ₹58.5 million in five-day digital arrest scam conducted via video call

Summary

An Indian woman from Gurugram lost 58.5 million rupees ($663,390) in a "digital arrest" scam in September 2024. Scammers posing as law enforcement officials on video calls threatened her with imprisonment and harm to her son, coercing her into transferring large sums of money. Over five days, she transferred 28 million rupees on September 4 and 30 million rupees the next day through her HDFC Bank account. The money was transferred to an account in ICICI Bank held by "Mr Piyush," and then quickly moved into 11 accounts at Sree Padmavathi Cooperative Bank, most of which were linked to fictitious addresses or unsuspecting individuals. The woman has since pursued legal action and traced the money trail, but banking ombudsman rulings have dismissed her complaints against HDFC and ICICI. A former director of Sree Padmavathi Cooperative Bank was arrested in May 2025 in connection with the case.