Elderly Jabalpur couple placed under digital arrest; rescued by police after 4 days

Jabalpur, Dec 9 (PTI) A retired school principal and her husband were placed under "digital arrest" for four days at their Jabalpur home by cyber fraudsters posing as ATS officers and rescued by police on Tuesday when she told a lawyer about their ordeal, an official said.

One of the fraudsters sent the elderly woman to bank for some work and she managed to inform an acquaintance's lawyer about the matter. Following this, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP- Crime Branch) Jitendra Singh arrived at the couple's home in the Ghampaur area and rescued them from digital arrest.

On December 6, a caller, claiming to be an ATS officer, told the couple they had connections with a "terrorist" and Rs 70 crore of money laundering transaction had been conducted through their bank account, and they had received Rs 70 lakh as commission, he said.

The caller also told the duo that confidential information about the country was being sent abroad using a SIM card registered in their name, according to the ASP.

The caller sought from the couple information about their family members, mobile phones, Aadhaar card, bank accounts and FDs, Singh said.

After this, the accused asked them to download an app sent through a link. Through this app, he kept the couple under digital arrest for four days, the police official said.

The fraudster sent the woman to bank for some work on Tuesday afternoon. After leaving the house, the woman informed a lawyer about their situation and cops were subsequently called in.

Police have registered a case and started investigation, the ASP added.

It was not immediately known if the couple had transferred any money to scamsters during their digital arrest, a form of organized cybercrime in which fraudsters impersonate law enforcement personnel and coerce victims into transferring money. PTI COR MAS RSY