Thane, 6th December 2024: A 54-year-old man from Thane fell victim to a cyber scam, losing Rs 59 lakh after fraudsters posed as Customs and CBI officers, threatening him with legal action over supposed criminal activities.

The incident took place between November 26 and December 2. The victim received multiple calls from someone claiming to be a Customs officer from Delhi, who informed him that a parcel with his name had been seized, allegedly containing drugs. The caller said the matter was being referred to the CBI for further investigation and instructed the victim to cooperate.

Soon after, the victim received another call from someone pretending to be a CBI officer, who falsely claimed that the victim’s name was linked to serious crimes such as human trafficking and money laundering. The caller demanded Rs 59 lakh to resolve the matter and clear his name.

Frightened, the victim transferred the money into several bank accounts provided by the callers, who continued to pressurize him for further payments. It was only after the money was transferred that the victim realized he had been scammed and filed a complaint with the police.

Following the complaint, the Naupada police registered a case under sections 318(4) (cheating) and 319(2) (cheating by personation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and relevant sections of the Information Technology (IT) Act.