Retd Col’s ‘digital arrest’ in Chandigarh: Scam money routed through 250 bank accounts, finds probe

Digging deeper into digital arrest scam where a retired Colonel was duped of ₹3.4 crore, police have found that the scam money routed through 250 bank accounts and the arrested individuals are either account holders or handlers involved in the fraud and not the masterminds.

According to the police, the majority of the arrested individuals had allowed their accounts to be used in exchange for a 1% commission, while the rest of the defrauded money was siphoned off to unknown beneficiaries. Some handlers even convinced illiterate individuals to open bank accounts for the purpose of laundering the funds. Investigators have so far identified five major bank accounts that received hefty amounts but found no direct linkages among most account holders, suggesting a highly decentralised fraud network.

The complainant, retired Colonel Dalip Singh Bajwa and his wife were kept under digital arrest by the fraudsters for 10 days, and money was extorted from them. So far, police have arrested seven people, most of whom were either account holders or handlers involved in laundering the money.

In one instance, Rajat Sharma allegedly persuaded Sandeep, a Class 7 pass out, for using his account for receiving ₹60 lakh. Sandeep retained a 1% cut before passing on the rest to another suspect.

What is the case

The ordeal began when the fraudsters shared a fake Aadhaar and ATM card bearing Bajwa’s name, accusing the victim of money laundering. After the couple expressed their inability to travel to Mumbai citing their old age, the scammers placed them under digital arrest that lasted 10 days.

“They never showed their faces but wore uniforms and monitored our calls day and night,” said Bajwa.

After a few days, the scammers demanded money from them claiming it to be for official verification, which they informed will be returned. When the couple’s savings ran dry, the scammers simulated a Supreme Court session via video call, during which a supposed judge told Bajwa that they would take a lenient view and grant him bail — provided he deposited ₹2 crore as bail bonds.

The couple began reaching out to relatives for financial help. It was a family member who, sensing something amiss, sent someone to their house. It was when the couple came to know about the scam. “We feared for our lives. At one instance, the caller asked us to leave the bank and we thought somebody was chasing us. We stopped going out as we feared the threat to our family,” they said.

So far, seven low-level operatives—mostly account holders used to launder funds—have been arrested. The masterminds remain at large, and police suspect they may be operating from abroad. The investigation is underway.