Rajkot: An 80-year-old gynaecologist was kept under ‘digital arrest’ at her home for four days and made to transfer around Rs 58.5 lakh to the accused through RTGS.The fraud came to light when Vishal Desani, a constable attached to the Cybercrime police station, was alerted by bank officials. He immediately reached the woman’s residence and helped free her from the digital confinement.The woman was preparing to transfer another Rs 21.5 lakh to the accused when the transaction was stopped following the intervention of bank officials and the Cybercrime police.According to police sources, the woman, who lives in the Jagnath Plot area, received a phone call four days ago. The caller allegedly told her that a sim card registered in her name was being used for illegal activities and that her name had surfaced in a money-laundering case. She was threatened with legal action and imprisonment.The accused later sent her a link on WhatsApp and allegedly gained access to her mobile phone. They also obtained details about her relatives and posed as officials of the Mumbai Crime Branch, police said.During the four-day period, the woman visited a bank and transferred more than Rs 58 lakh through RTGS. She reportedly told bank officials that she needed the money to help her children purchase a plot.On Wednesday, she again went to the bank to transfer more than Rs 21 lakh at the direction of the accused. However, bank officials became suspicious after noticing that she appeared frightened and asked her to return in the afternoon. They then alerted Desai, following which a Cybercrime Police team reached her home.DCP (Crime) Jagdish Bangarva said police have initiated steps to freeze the money transferred to the accused’s accounts.The woman, who is reportedly unmarried, has been informed about the fraud and is being counselled by the police. Her family members have also been alerted.
