A 32-year-old resident of Delhi was reportedly defrauded of more than Rs 9 lakh by an individual impersonating the chief of the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), who accused him of involvement in the Pulwama terror attack, according to police reports from Monday. The incident was reported on October 14, after the victim from Karol Bagh informed authorities that on August 13, he received calls from several unidentified numbers. The callers falsely claimed he was implicated in the 2019 Pulwama attack and asserted that Rs 50 lakh had been deposited in a bank account opened in his name in Kashmir.
According to the FIR, the victim stated, “I received phone calls on my mobile number from three different numbers where the callers falsely accused me of being involved in the Pulwama Attack in Kashmir and alleged that an amount of Rs 50 lakhs had been credited to a bank account opened in my name in Kashmir.” The callers insisted that the account was linked to his identification and warned him to keep the matter confidential, alleging that ‘influential persons’ were involved. They instructed him to activate his camera, secure his room, and refrain from informing his family.
They interrogated him, gathered information about his bank accounts, and connected him with someone who claimed to be the ATS chief, as noted in the FIR. The victim mentioned that the accused instructed him to visit the Lucknow office to participate in the investigation, but he expressed his reluctance. The victim was then told to transfer funds for “legalisation” to an account supposedly sanctioned by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Fearing for his safety, he transferred Rs 8.9 lakh through RTGS from his bank account and an additional Rs 77,000 via an online payment app to a UPI ID, according to the FIR.
Subsequently, the scammers sent him a forged bail application, demanding an additional Rs 4 lakh for his “release.” Upon his refusal to pay more, the callers disconnected and turned off their phones, police reported. The complainant stated, “I have suffered a total loss of Rs 9,67,000 and mental harassment due to the fraudulent acts of these unknown persons.” A case was filed under section 318(4) (cheating) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita on October 14, and efforts are ongoing to locate the perpetrators and reclaim the stolen funds.
Previously, a 78-year-old retired banker from South Delhi fell victim to a similar scam, losing nearly Rs 23 crore in a digital arrest scheme between August 4 and September 4, where he was threatened with being linked to the Pulwama attack funding. On February 14, 2019, a horrific terror attack in Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir, involved an explosive-laden vehicle colliding with a convoy of CRPF personnel, resulting in the deaths of at least 40 soldiers. The attacker was identified as Adil Ahmed Dar, a member of the Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad.
