In a shocking case of cybercrime, a former Bombay High Court judge narrowly escaped a ₹2 crore ‘digital arrest’ extortion attempt after fraudsters tried to trap him through a fake police video call. His prompt action helped avert the scam and alert the authorities.
The retired judge, now a senior lawyer, told reporters on Saturday that the incident occurred on Wednesday around 11 a.m. He received a video call from an unidentified person dressed in a police uniform, appearing to sit inside a police station. The caller accused him of involvement in an extortion case allegedly registered at the Borivali police station in Mumbai.
The scammer claimed that a SIM card purchased using the judge’s Aadhaar details was involved in illegal transactions, including one linked to a Canara Bank account opened under his name in 2023. They even tried to implicate him by suggesting connections with Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal.
When the judge denied any wrongdoing, the call was escalated to a woman posing as a senior officer. She threatened immediate arrest, warning that unless ₹2 crore was transferred electronically by 2:30 p.m., he would be jailed without bail.
Refusing to be intimidated, the judge reported the matter to the Nagpur Police Cyber Cell and informed the Bombay High Court protocol officer.
Investigations have traced the scam call to the Rajasthan-Gujarat border. Nagpur Cyber Police have launched a detailed probe.
“A common person might have fallen for this,” the judge said, stressing the need for stronger action against such cyber frauds.
