Delhi reels under biggest ‘digital arrest’ scam as retired banker loses ₹22.92 crore

For six weeks, life in South Delhi’s elite Gulmohar Park appeared unchanged for 78-year-old retired banker Naresh Malhotra. He took his morning strolls, met friends at the club, and entertained neighbors with adda sessions.

Yet behind this calm routine, Malhotra was living a private nightmare — a victim of what Delhi Police now call the capital’s biggest-ever “digital arrest” fraud.

Under the grip of scammers impersonating Enforcement Directorate and Mumbai Police officers, Malhotra systematically transferred ₹22.92 crore from his accounts to 16 bank accounts across the country. Over 21 visits between August 4 and September 4, he made 21 RTGS transfers while bank staff — familiar with him and unsuspecting of coercion — watched him sip tea and converse casually as his life savings disappeared.

“It is as if I was possessed. My thinking was completely taken over by the scammers,” Malhotra later told investigators.

The fraud came to light only on September 19, when he mustered the courage to report the loss. By then, the stolen money had already been splintered into seven layers through an astonishing 4,236 transactions, spread across accounts in states from Uttarakhand to Tamil Nadu. Not one rupee went to a bank in Delhi.

Delhi Police’s Intelligence Fusion & Strategic Operations (IFSO) Branch says the delay in reporting proved costly. “The golden hour was lost,” admitted Joint Commissioner Rajneesh Gupta. “Such layering is designed to frustrate recovery. We have seen money move in as many as 20 layers in similar cases.”

So far, investigators have managed to freeze only ₹2.67 crore of the stolen amount.

Malhotra, who retired in 2020 after five decades in senior positions with both government and private banks, recounted the intimidation that began with a phone call on August 1. The caller alleged his identity had been misused for terror funding and that only the RBI and Supreme Court could “bail him out” — if he deposited huge sums as “surety.” All his daily expenses, even petty withdrawals, required scammer approval during those weeks.

The final turning point came when the fraudsters demanded another ₹5 crore on September 19. This time, Malhotra resisted. “They told me to transfer money to a private company account in West Bengal. I refused. I told them arrest me if you must. When I pushed back, they disconnected the phone. That was it,” he said.

Bank managers, meanwhile, maintain there were no red flags in Malhotra’s behavior. One manager recalled: “He was calm, spoke to us, even had tea while making transfers. There was no sign he was under duress.”

The case has now become a textbook example of how sophisticated “digital arrest” scams can override even the instincts of seasoned bankers — and how easily technology, layered transactions, and psychological control can strip away a lifetime’s savings.