A young doctor practising in Lucknow fell victim to a sophisticated cyber fraud scheme, losing close to three lakh rupees after criminals posing as police officers threatened to leak a fabricated nude video and have him arrested.
The Deceptive Call and Threats
The harrowing ordeal for the Indiranagar-based doctor began on December 24. He received a call from an unknown number where the individual on the other end introduced himself as a police officer. This imposter falsely claimed to be in possession of an objectionable video featuring the doctor and threatened him with severe legal action and immediate arrest if he did not comply with their demands.
Fearing for his reputation and professional standing, the terrified victim was instructed to contact another mobile number. When he made that call, a different fraudster picked up and immediately began demanding money. The caller played on the doctor's fears, citing his "reputation and self-respect" and warning of dire consequences if payments were not made promptly.
Multiple Transactions Under Duress
Under immense psychological pressure and the fear of public humiliation and arrest, the doctor succumbed to the blackmail. On that same day, December 24, he transferred Rs 1,34,500 online to an account specified by the fraudsters.
The harassment did not stop there. Two days later, on December 26, the culprits allegedly forced him to transfer another Rs 1 lakh to an Indian Bank account based in Firozabad. In a separate transaction following another call from a person again posing as a police official, an additional Rs 55,000 was siphoned off. In total, the doctor was cheated of approximately Rs 2.90 lakh through these multiple online transactions.
Police Action and Investigation
After the repeated demands for money, the victim grew suspicious and finally decided to seek official help. He lodged an online complaint with the national cybercrime helpline number 1930. Following this, a formal First Information Report (FIR) was registered on Sunday under section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which pertains to cheating.
SHO Ghazipur (Indiranagar) Rajesh Kumar Maurya confirmed the incident and stated that investigations are actively underway. Police efforts are currently focused on tracing the origin of the threatening calls and the bank accounts used to receive the illicit funds. Authorities are urging citizens to be vigilant and verify the identity of anyone claiming to be a law enforcement officer over the phone, especially when they demand money.
