Chennai: A national-level operator who made fraudulent ‘digital arrest' of people and extorted about 3.8 crore has been nabbed by Chennai police from his native town in Assam.
Police said Partha Pratim Bora, 38, from Jagiroad, Morigaon district in Assam, had extorted 3.82 crore from at least eight people in all before transferring the sums to 178 bank accounts across India since March .
It all began when a retired administrative officer from CPWD residing in Thiruvanmiyur received a WhatsApp call from an unknown number on March 9. The caller, claiming to be from Maharashtra police, claimed that an arrest warrant was pending against the retired officer.
After obtaining ID and address proofs, the caller demanded his presence in Mumbai regarding a money-laundering case involving his Aadhaar-linked mobile. The call was transferred to a ‘TRAI officer', who sought family and bank details and insisted on a WhatsApp video call. They warned about phone tracking and forbade discussing the ‘digital arrest'.
On March 4, 2014, they directed him to liquidate all fixed deposits for transfer to the Reserve Bank of India, promising reimbursement post-verification. The frightened ex-officer transferred 57 lakh and 35 lakh to an ICICI Bank account. When they demanded a body search, he terminated the call and powered off his mobile.
After realising that he had been deceived, he filed a complaint.
A special team of the central crime branch trailed the money and landed in Guwahati. Inquiries revealed that the ICICI account belonged to Harshi Healthcare Services Pvt Ltd, owned by Bora, 38. During interrogation, Bora said he collaborated with his associates from Delhi, Gujarat, West Bengal, and other locations. Following his arrest, he was produced before the CJM court, Guwahati, and taken to Chennai on a transit warrant. He was later produced before XIth Metropolitan Magistrate Court at Saidapet in Chennai and was remanded in judicial custody.
Chennai: A national-level operator who made fraudulent ‘digital arrest' of people and extorted about 3.8 crore has been nabbed by Chennai police from his native town in Assam.
Police said Partha Pratim Bora, 38, from Jagiroad, Morigaon district in Assam, had extorted 3.82 crore from at least eight people in all before transferring the sums to 178 bank accounts across India since March .
It all began when a retired administrative officer from CPWD residing in Thiruvanmiyur received a WhatsApp call from an unknown number on March 9. The caller, claiming to be from Maharashtra police, claimed that an arrest warrant was pending against the retired officer.
After obtaining ID and address proofs, the caller demanded his presence in Mumbai regarding a money-laundering case involving his Aadhaar-linked mobile. The call was transferred to a ‘TRAI officer', who sought family and bank details and insisted on a WhatsApp video call. They warned about phone tracking and forbade discussing the ‘digital arrest'.
On March 4, 2014, they directed him to liquidate all fixed deposits for transfer to the Reserve Bank of India, promising reimbursement post-verification. The frightened ex-officer transferred 57 lakh and 35 lakh to an ICICI Bank account. When they demanded a body search, he terminated the call and powered off his mobile.
After realising that he had been deceived, he filed a complaint.
A special team of the central crime branch trailed the money and landed in Guwahati. Inquiries revealed that the ICICI account belonged to Harshi Healthcare Services Pvt Ltd, owned by Bora, 38. During interrogation, Bora said he collaborated with his associates from Delhi, Gujarat, West Bengal, and other locations. Following his arrest, he was produced before the CJM court, Guwahati, and taken to Chennai on a transit warrant. He was later produced before XIth Metropolitan Magistrate Court at Saidapet in Chennai and was remanded in judicial custody.