Dharampur man duped of lakhs in Aadhaar scam
In a case that underscores how cyber fraudsters exploit fear and misinformation to dupe unsuspecting victims, the Dharampur police carried out a meticulous investigation leading to the arrest of three accused in a sophisticated scam.
A resident of Dharampur lodged a complaint on November 15, 2024, stating that he received a call on November 11 from a man posing as a telecom official. The caller claimed that the complainant’s mobile number was being temporarily blocked due to its involvement in suspicious activities. Although the complainant clarified that the number wasn’t his, the caller insisted it was registered using his Aadhaar card and that an FIR had been filed against him.
To intensify the scare, the call was allegedly transferred to a man claiming to be Mumbai Police officer Sandeep Rao. Under the guise of an investigation, Rao coaxed personal details from the complainant and warned him that 17 complaints were linked to the number. A video call followed, during which a man dressed as a police officer ordered the complainant to isolate himself in a locked room.
The harassment escalated as the victim was shown what appeared to be an FIR and an official ID, followed by requests to involve his son in the call. He was then informed that his Aadhaar was linked to multiple mobile numbers across cities and a Canara Bank account in Mumbai under the name “Harvinder,” allegedly involved in money laundering. The fraudsters named notorious criminal Naresh Goyal as part of the conspiracy to increase pressure on the victim.
To make the scenario appear authentic, Rao sent a link showing a supposed arrest warrant and a fabricated RBI document claiming the victim’s account would be probed. Rao then introduced another impersonator posing as Additional Director General of Police Visheshwar Patil. He promised help and asked the victim to click on yet another link with a second forged RBI notice stating that his money would be withdrawn for investigation and returned within three days if found innocent.
Failing to see through the elaborate scheme, the victim transferred Rs 50,000 via Google Pay to a Bandhan Bank account and later Rs 8,00,000 via National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) to multiple accounts. After the transaction, all calls ceased and the victim realised he had fallen prey to a cyberfraud.
An FIR was registered at the Dharampur police station under sections 318(4), 111 and 61(2) of the BNS for cheating, organised crime and criminal conspiracy.
“During the investigation, our team analysed suspicious bank accounts, mobile data and digital footprints, leading to the arrest of Mahesh Patidar (38), Rohit Karre (33) and Shyam Kumar (38) on April 25 from Indore, Madhya Pradesh,” said Solan SP Gaurav Singh. The accused were brought to Dharampur on transit remand and were presented in court on April 28, where they were remanded to four days of police custody for interrogation.
The police also revealed that two of the accused have prior criminal records: Shyam Kumar Patidar is facing a fraud case in Shajapur and Mahesh Patidar is involved in an assault case registered at Khargone Police Station in Madhya Pradesh.
Himachal Tribune