Mule a/cs supplier held in 11cr digital arrest fraud case

Pune: A mule account supplier, Amar Shivaji Attargi (24) of Solapur, has been arrested in a digital arrest fraud in which a retired man (82) from Bhandarkar Road was duped of Rs 10.75 crore.On Feb 22, the Pune cybercrime police have already arrested two other men – a BTech student, Harshad Subhas Dhantole (23), and Samarth Suresh Deshmukh (24), both residents of Karvenagar – in the case. The police, however, are still searching for a social media influencer in the case.In the last week of Jan, online fraudsters defrauded an 82-year-old man from Bhandarkar Road in a digital arrest fraud by posing as officials from TRAI, CBI and the judiciary. The victim lost his life's savings and fixed deposits.According to the police, the accused impersonated officials from TRAI, CBI and the judiciary and placed the elderly man under a ‘digital arrest' in connection with a fake money laundering case. They alleged that the victim's bank accounts were used in illegal transactions. The suspects even set up a virtual courtroom and offered him legal assistance to defend himself. They then convinced him to transfer Rs 10.75 crore to various bank accounts.Senior inspector Swapnali Shinde of Pune cybercrime police said, "Attargi, an unemployed man, has collected many mule bank accounts and handed them over to the social media influencer, who ultimately supplied these accounts to the fraudsters to execute online crimes".When asked what Attargi gained by collecting and handing over the bank account details to the social media influencer, Shinde said, "Attargi received commission for each account". So far, police have seized Rs 1.34 crore from the different banks and in cash from the suspects.