Agra, Sept. 29 -- An 80-year-old retired agricultural scientist, Dr HC Nitant, fell victim to a week-long "digital arrest" by cyber criminals who extorted Rs 23 lakh from him, officials said today.
The fraudsters impersonated officials from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Income Tax Department, threatening him with false legal charges.
Dr. Nitant, a resident of Srinagar Colony in Trans-Yamuna and former Principal Scientist at the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), received a WhatsApp call on the morning of September 10. The caller, identifying himself as Ajay Patil from the Enforcement Directorate, claimed that a bank account under Dr. Nitant's name in Mumbai was linked to illegal transactions worth Rs 30 crore, alle...