In 5-day trauma of cyber blackmail, 74-yr-old forced to part with Rs 97 lakh

A 74-year-old man from Pune went through a harrowing ordeal of cyber blackmail over five days in which he was coerced to remain on a phone call and go to the bank multiple times to make large online transfers totalling Rs 97 lakh. Cyber fraudsters posing as police officers threatened to arrest him for ‘sending obscene messages’, ‘money laundering’ and in matter of ‘national security.’

An FIR in the case was registered by the 74-year-old Baner resident who is retired. In the third week of July, he received a call from a person who identified himself as an officer from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).