Masked robbers break into PWD contractor’s house near M'luru; tie up residents, steal money, jewelry
Mangaluru: A group of nine people broke into and burgled a farmhouse owned by PWD contractor Padmanabha Kotian at Ulaibettu on the outskirts of Mangaluru city on Friday night, after assaulting Kotian and his family members.
Mangaluru City Police Commissioner Anupam Agrawal has said that the robbers who were under masks entered the farmhouse and, threatening Kotian with a knife, demanded money from him. The robbers ransacked the house after tying up Kotian and his family members using bed-sheets, with Kotian’s hand being injured in the scuffle, officer added.
The robbers stole money and jewelry that was in the farmhouse. They also took Kotian’s vehicle that had been parked in the front yard, but left it at a short distance away from the house before escaping from the place, said the Commissioner.
A case has been registered at the Mangalore Rural Police Station and the officers are investigating to get further information about the group that broke into the contractor’s farmhouse, the senior officer has said.
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Senior citizen duped of Rs 23.5 lakh on threat of digital arrest in Thane district
Thane (PTI): A 68-year-old man was allegedly cheated of Rs 23.5 lakh by cyber fraudsters who threatened him with digital arrest in Maharashtra's Thane district, police said on Monday.
This is a second such incident reported in the district this week, an official said.
Based on a complaint, the Kalyan police have registered a case under relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act, Assistant Inspector Vinod Patil of Mahatma Phule police station said.
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"The complainant alleged that two unidentified persons cheated him of Rs 23.5 lakh by threatening to place him under digital arrest and forced him to transfer money through online transactions between December 8 and 12," Patil said.
'Digital arrest’ is a growing form of cybercrime in which fraudsters pose as law enforcement officials or personnel of government agencies and intimidate victims through audio/video calls. They hold the victims hostage and put pressure on them to pay money.
He said that the accused allegedly contacted the victim on WhatsApp video calls and claimed that his bank transactions were suspicious and linked to alleged irregularities.
"The fraudsters told him that he could be placed under digital arrest, but assured him that they would help him avoid legal action if he cooperated," the officer said.
He said that the accused repeatedly threatened the senior citizen and put pressure on him to make multiple online money transfers amounting to Rs 23.5 lakh.
The fraud came to light after the victim narrated the incident to acquaintances and approached the police on realising he had been duped.
"We are analysing bank transaction details, call records and digital evidence to track down the accused," Patil said.
