Vocalist recalls 5-day ‘digital arrest’ ordeal on FB after getting back 66L
Times of India | 7 February 2025
12 Kolkata: Hindustani classical singer Subhra Guha was cheated out of Rs 66 lakh by cyber fraudsters in the name of digital arrest. The bank fraud section of the detective department has tracked and recovered the money, and returned it to Guha on Feb 4. Guha on Thursday went live on Kolkata Police's FB page to recount her ordeal.
Guha, a vocalist from the Agra gharana, said she had received a call on Nov 2 from a person who claimed to be from telecom regulator TRAI. The caller said her phone number and name had been used by 25 criminals and that she could face jail. The caller then connected her to what was stated to be the Delhi Police's crime branch, and the man at the other end of the call told her he would put her on to a CBI officer.
"The person from CBI who spoke to me claimed that money laundering had occurred and the money was in my account. He and others threatened me with six months in jail. I was asked to keep my mobile camera on. Between Nov 2 and 6, I ended up paying Rs 66 lakh in RTGS to the fraudsters. I am a performer, and I have visitors. But each time there was a knock on the door, the interrogation became more aggressive and I didn't open it. It was only after five days that I realised that I was being fooled," Guha said.
Guha, who lives near Prince Anwar Shah Road, then lodged a complaint with the local cops. The detective department took over her case and an FIR was lodged on Nov 8.
The cyber cell raided at least six locations in Navi Mumbai and Goa in connection with several cases, including Guha's. Though the initial attempts failed, they eventually managed to track down two accused — Dhanaji Jagannath Shinde (36) from Shastri Nagar, and Vinod Kondiba Pawar (40) from Navi Mumbai — to a hotel in Sealdah. "The accused initially called the victim via IVR after conducting social media research on her," said Joint CP (crime and traffic) Rupesh Kumar.
Subsequently, the cops arrested three more individuals — Krishnanagar residents Pratap Roy (27), Utpal Sikdar (31), and Kumaresh Haldar (35) — from Baguiati and Krishnanagar. This gang has also been active in cryptocurrency investment fraud and the money they defrauded was parked in cryptocurrency accounts.
"After being pointed out by mule account holder Kalpana Roy, we arrested Roy. We found 10,000 USDT cryptocurrency in his wallet, which was blo-cked after sending an email. The wallet's value is Rs 8.4 lakh. We nabbed Sikdar and seized Rs 74 lakh, two laptops, and two mobile handsets from his house. We arrested Haldar from Krishnanagar on Friday," Kumar said. A cryptocurrency account and Rs 78 lakh cash were seized after a letter was sent to the cryptocurrency exchange with offices in Cayman Islands. Cops said many digital arrest frauds are linked to this gang. "This is a rare occasion when we could block a cryptocurrency account so fast," an officer said.