The scam began with an automated voice call, falsely claiming to be from TRAI.The message warned that the recipient’s phone number would be blocked within two hours and instructed them to press 9 for more information. Upon doing so, the call was transferred to a person who claimed to be from the Telecom Division.
This individual falsely informed the recipient that a complaint had been lodged against a number linked to their Aadhaar card for illegal advertising and sending harassing texts in Bombay Andheri East. They further stated that the Mumbai Police had sent a blocking request to TRAI, necessitating the blockage of all numbers associated with the Aadhaar owner.
The scammer provided fabricated details of an FIR and claimed to forward the call to the Andheri East police station. The recipient was instructed to request a “clarification letter” from the police to confirm their ownership of the original number and dissociate themselves from the alleged case to prevent the blockage. The scammer cited the prevalence of identity theft in India as a reason for this procedure.
The call was then connected to another scammer, who impersonated a sub-inspector (SI) of the Mumbai Police. This individual collected some personal details and stated that a statement would need to be recorded since the recipient could not be physically present in Bombay.
The recipient received a video call from a third individual, who appeared in a police uniform and communicated in fluent English, which raised the recipient’s suspicions due to the absence of a Marathi accent. The scammer pretended to call his Head Constable in English and issued a fake order to “investigate” the case. The recipient decided to play along with the act.
The fourth scammer, posing as the head constable, then pretended to record the recipient’s “statement” and asked for their Aadhaar number, which the recipient intentionally provided incorrectly. The scammers continued their charade, claiming that the recipient was involved in a “Rs 65-crore money laundering case.”
When the scammer inquired suspiciously if the recipient was hiding something, the recipient responded humorously , “This got too funny there and honestly, cringe. ‘Kya aap kuch chhupa rahe ho hum se,’ he asked. ” I told him Dawood is my chacha. ‘Who Dawood?’ he wondered. ‘Dawood Ibrahim. He’s my chacha (uncle)’. I told them to piss off and that was it,” he added.
User urged the Mumbai Police to pay attention to his post about scammers impersonating them, stating, “The point is that the scammers are now a lot more sophisticated in their tactics. I don’t see a reason why my parents, older generation won’t fall for this. I bought the entire skit for 30 mins.” His post quickly went viral on social media, with several others sharing similar experiences.
Another microblogger also shared a picture of a fake identity card of Mumbai cop that is being widely circulated by scamsters.
“Apparently, they are also sharing this Identity Card of the same cop when I got the same call,” she wrote.
In her post Mumbai Police also responded, ” Don’t entertain such calls. They may be fraudsters. Request you to report the matter at your nearest police station for necessary action.”
