Elderly Bengaluru woman loses Rs 1.2 crore to cyber-criminals posing as officials

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: A 77-year-old woman from Bengaluru was swindled out of Rs 1.2 crore by cybercriminals posing as officials from the Telecom department and the Mumbai Crime Branch.

The scam, which unfolded over nearly 20 days, has left the elderly woman and her family in severe mental and financial distress. The scam began on June 26 when Lakshmi Shivakumar received a call from an unidentified person claiming to be a representative of the Telecom department.

The caller alleged that a SIM card registered in her name in Mumbai was being used for illegal activities. To add to her distress, the caller informed her that the Telecom department had filed a complaint with the Mumbai Crime Branch.

Shortly after this call, Lakshmi received another call from miscreants identifying themselves as Sandeep Rao and Akash Kulhari, who pretended to be officers from the Mumbai Crime Branch.

They falsely accused her of being involved in laundering Rs 60 crore and demanded her bank account details and investment proofs for verification. The scammers threatened her with arrest for non-cooperation.

They even showed her a fabricated FIR and an arrest warrant allegedly issued by the Supreme Court to lend credibility to their claims. This scam took a significant toll on the victim, both mentally and financially.

The fear of legal repercussions and the pressure from the fraudulent officials led her to comply with their demands.