Goa Police nabs fake CBI officer in 'digital arrest' scam

Panaji | A 19-year-old man has been apprehended in Punjab for allegedly impersonating a CBI officer and extorting Rs 18 lakh from the complainant in Goa by threatening to place him under digital arrest, a cyber police official said on Sunday.

The accused, Surinder Kumar, was traced to Ludhiana during the investigation. A team of cybercrime police brought him to Goa on Sunday, a senior cybercrime officer told PTI.

A local court remanded Kumar to police custody for four days.

"The accused had contacted the victim through WhatsApp by posing as a CBI officer. He falsely claimed that the victim's bank account and personal details had been linked to a money laundering case and coerced the victim into transferring Rs 18 lakh to avoid legal consequences," the police officer said.

Police registered a case under different sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) and section 66 (d) of the Information Technology Act.

Police tracked down Kumar through technical surveillance and financial trail analysis.