Rise of 'Digital Arrest Scam': Journalist falls victim, shares her terrifying ordeal in detailed account

From ordinary citizens to highly educated professionals like doctors and lawyers, the growing 'digital arrest scam' has entrapped many. Recently, a journalist from one of India's leading media organizations became the latest victim.

In a detailed account, the Aaj Tak journalist shared her harrowing experience after receiving a hoax call, allegedly from FedEx.

She received a call from an unknown number on Oct 5 at 12:15 pm. A recorded voice on the other end said, "This call is from FedEx Courier Company. Press 1 for details of your courier. Press 2 for tracking updates."

Hearing the word "courier" surprised her, but she thought it might be related to a parcel from the office or an Amazon order she had placed a few days earlier. Assuming this, she pressed 1.

That was her first mistake, and from that moment on, one error led to another. By the time she realized what was happening, she had endured hours of fear, trauma, and mental anguish.

Despite her knowledge of cyber fraud, she found herself digitally trapped. The trouble began as soon as she pressed that number. A voice identified itself as Karan Verma from FedEx. She explained, "I got a call. I haven't sent any courier, but if someone has sent one to me, please tell me the details."

Karan put her on hold, and after a moment, he returned with alarming news, "Ma'am, you have sent the courier. You are the sender." Angered, she protested, "I haven't sent any couriers. Stop making fake calls."

He then informed her, "Your courier has been seized at Mumbai airport,” which she refused. In a serious tone, he explained that the courier was being sent from Mumbai to Taiwan. Suspicious items were found, which is why it was seized. Even her Aadhaar card was linked to this.

The fraudster hasked her to file a police complaint, making her feel like her Adhar card was misused and that FedEx needed to send this complaint to the Mumbai Police.

Just when she thought it was over, Verma insisted her to talk to the Mumbai Police, as it was crucial regarding the contents of the courier.

When asked what was in the courier, he said that the prepaid courier had five passports, three bank credit cards, four kg of cloth, an HP laptop, and 200 grams of MDMA.

The journalist refused the courier's ownership and asked about MDMA. Verma said that since MMDA in the courier raises concerns, which is why he contacted her.

This shook her, and she insisted on talking to the police. Vema asked her to get a clarification note from them.

When the call connected, the background noise shifted to that of a chaotic police control room. A deep voice introduced himself: "I am Vinay Kumar Chaudhary from the Mumbai Police. Tell me, why did you call?" She explained the FedEx call, and he assured her of help, asking for her name and Aadhaar number. After a brief hold, the tone shifted, and she felt as though she were being interrogated.

The police asked her as if she had sent this courier or was involved in drug trafficking, which she clearly denied, emphasizing that she doesn't even live in Mumbai.

On asking for a clarification note, police asked her to visit the Mumbai office to prove her innocence.

When she told the police that she lives in Delhi, they asked her to file a complaint via an online video call only on Skype, which will be recorded.

Fearfully, she downloaded Skype while the call continued. Suddenly, the police asked her to use wi-fi, turn off her data, and put the phone on flight mode, as if anyone interrupts the call, action will be taken against her.

Before any conversation started, the entire house was inspected via video call — doors closed, curtains drawn. She followed every command like a robot, even putting her phone on charge as instructed. After the inspection, she was told to click on "Mumbai 911" for a search.

A man in a blue uniform appeared on camera —Vinay Kumar Chaudhary. "You were talking to me on the phone. Now your statement will be recorded." She was ready.

He asked her to recount the entire incident and list the items. When she mentioned the 200 grams of MDMA, he snapped at her, "Do you know what that is? You were sending drugs."

She denied all the allegations, but after a few minutes, the police said that there’s a money laundering case against her and she had embezzled ₹2 crore with Panjapati Syed.

They asked for her bank details and how much cash and gold she had at home. When she couldn’t provide much, the voice grew angrier. Documents with four people's faces, including two arrests, were sent to her on Skype. An arrest warrant was issued in her name.

On the line with the so-called 'Mumbai Police', she was accused not only of drug smuggling but also money laundering. In an instant, she had gone from being a journalist to a criminal.

She was interrogated in a similar manner, and they provided a detailed list of supposed financial manipulations related to her Bank of Baroda account. Crying, she pleaded for mercy, but there was none. One charge followed another, each accompanied by "evidence."

Then, the tone softened, as if they were giving her a chance to defend herself. "Cooperate with the police, and the investigation will take seven days. You must have given your Aadhaar to someone in a café, and that’s how it got misused. Do you suspect anyone? Have you had any altercations?"

She denied everything.

They threatened her that her family is in danger and that they had information about her house and office, and if she disclosed any details of the investigation to anyone, she would face two years in jail. If the drug case was confirmed, the sentence could be as long as 15 years.

On the call, she was instructed to provide her name, location, what she was doing, and how much money she had spent. They claimed they were monitoring her every move.

The most shocking part was that they knew her office hours — they had her exact schedule. After a gruelling 90-minute video call, she was finally instructed to hang up. She felt compelled to reach out to someone for help, but she was afraid that her calls might be monitored.

With the doors and windows closed, she wrote down the entire incident and reached out to one of her relatives via video call. He was shocked by her story and immediately switched to WhatsApp, assuring her it was all a scam — a trap.

Following his advice, she called the cybercrime unit, where she was told to submit a written report. However, despite her attempts online, she couldn’t register her complaint.

She also contacted a senior colleague at work, who confirmed that this type of scam was widespread and affected many people.

She shared her account to warn others to stay vigilant who often cloud victims' judgment and clarity.

In a similar incident filed on Oct 7, a 65-year-old woman from Indore was duped of ₹46 lakh in Sep where a group of fraudsters deceived out of by holding her under false pretence of questioning for five days.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Rajesh Dandotiya on Oct 8, said that the fraudsters group called the woman last month and posed as a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officer.

"The gang member deceived the woman by saying that a person misused her bank account for drug trafficking, terrorist activities, and money laundering, and due to her collusion with that person, an arrest warrant has been issued against her," Dandotiya said.

The official claimed that the woman was tricked by the fraudster during a video call into believing that she had been placed under "digital arrest."

He claimed that during the interrogation, the woman was told that her and her children's lives may be in jeopardy if she did not move the money that was in her bank account to the accounts listed by the gang.

He said that the woman, terrified by the threat, moved a total of ₹46 lakh in two installments to various bank accounts the gang had indicated.

The woman filed a complaint with the police and the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal after realizing she had been duped, he said.