Ahmedabad: A 73-year-old retired woman from Ghatlodia was allegedly duped of nearly Rs 40 lakh over four years by fraudsters posing as officials of govt financial agencies and legal authorities, police said.The woman filed a complaint with city police on March 10 after discovering the fraud. According to the complaint, the scam began in April 2022 when she received a call from a man identifying himself as Jitendra Goswami, who claimed to be a senior official of the National Payments Corporation of India. He told her that Rs 10 lakh from an old LIC investment was pending with a govt department and could be released after certain formalities are completed. Police said another caller, identifying herself as Praveena, later told the woman that the money could be secured through legal proceedings handled by an advocate named Ladura Munda. Trusting them, she transferred Rs 2.01 lakh as “legal fees” to a bank account in May 2022. She was then repeatedly asked to send more money for taxes, duties and documentation. Investigators said the accused remained in regular contact and gradually convinced the woman that the payout had risen to Rs 40 lakh and later to a higher amount. In July 2022, a man posing as an income tax officer allegedly asked her to open new bank accounts and send passbooks, ATM cards and a SIM card to an address in Delhi. Police suspect those accounts were used to route money. Between 2022 and 2025, the woman transferred several amounts through RTGS, NEFT and cash deposits from her accounts in State Bank of India, Union Bank of India and Canara Bank. The accused allegedly kept assuring her that funds, said to have grown to nearly Rs 1 crore in the NPCI system, would soon be released. In mid-2025, another caller claiming to be an NPCI official demanded Rs 7.44 lakh as tax to release Rs 1.48 crore. Police said the woman mortgaged jewellery and borrowed money before making the payment. The fraud surfaced earlier this month when yet another caller sought more money. Suspecting foul play, the woman contacted the national cybercrime helpline and later filed a police complaint.
