Kasaragod doctor loses Rs 1.19 crore in digital arrest scam, accused arrested
Kasaragod: In a shocking cyber fraud case, an 80-year-old doctor from Kasaragod allegedly lost Rs 1.19 crore to fraudsters who posed as Mumbai Crime Branch officials. Kerala cyber police have arrested one of the accused at Hyderabad airport.
The alleged fraud took place between November 24 and December 17, 2025, when the doctor reportedly received repeated phone calls and WhatsApp video calls from individuals claiming to be officials investigating a money-laundering case.
The callers allegedly told the doctor that his name had surfaced in the case and that he was under “digital arrest”. He was reportedly warned that failure to cooperate would lead to legal action. The fraudsters then directed him to transfer money to specified bank accounts, allegedly claiming that the transactions were necessary to clear his name.
Police said the doctor transferred a total of Rs 1,19,35,000 from several of his bank accounts during the period.
According to a report by The 420, following a formal complaint lodged by the victim, the Kasaragod Cyber Police registered a case and initiated a technical investigation into the financial transactions and phone records. After finding that the accused had left the country to work abroad, authorities circulated a lookout circular to all immigration checkpoints.
The suspect was detained by immigration officials at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad on September 17 after arriving in the country. A cyber police team from Kasaragod travelled to Hyderabad, took him into custody and subsequently recorded his arrest.
He was produced before the Kasaragod Chief Judicial Magistrate Court and remanded in judicial custody for 14 days.
Investigators are now examining the bank accounts through which the money was routed and the digital trail associated with the calls and transactions. Police are also working to identify other people allegedly involved in the operation and establish the role of the arrested suspect.
The investigation is continuing, and the allegations against the accused are yet to be established.
