Cybercriminals have devised a new modus operandi, using the name of the courier giant 'FedEx' to dupe unsuspecting victims. A woman lawyer in Bengaluru fell victim to cyber criminals who perpetrated a harrowing scheme, resulting in her loss of Rs 14.57 lakh and coercion into posing nude on camera for them over a span of two days, as per police sources cited by news agency PTI on Tuesday. The distressing incident unfolded between April 3 and 5 and was subsequently reported to the Bengaluru East division cybercrime police station.


The perpetrators engaged her in a marathon call lasting nearly 36 hours, recording her nude and subsequently blackmailing her for ransom, with threats to sell the compromising video clip on the dark web, Times of India reported. The fraudsters kept her ensnared in a single call from 2:15 pm on April 3 until 1:15 am on April 5, as per TOI.


The 29-year-old victim received a call purporting to be from the customer care department of Fedex, a prominent international courier company, informing her that a parcel sent in her name had been returned and necessitated immediate attention from a customer care executive. Subsequently, she was informed that the parcel contained illicit items, including passports, credit cards, and 140 synthetic narcotics (MDMA) sent from Mumbai to Thailand in her name, and that it was being held due to these contents, PTI's report.


Believing she was addressing a legitimate issue, the victim cooperated and was directed to contact the cybercrime team in Mumbai to file a complaint of identity theft. Recounting her ordeal in the complaint, she explained, "After I confirmed that yes, I want to make an identity theft complaint, they transferred my call to cyber crime team in Mumbai."


The so-called cybercrime team proceeded to extract personal information from her, including their Aadhaar card details, under the guise of investigating the purportedly illegal parcel. She was then connected to an individual claiming to be a senior CBI officer named Abhishek Chauhan, who coerced her into disclosing sensitive financial information, PTI's report stated.


" They kept grilling me about my bank account details such as existing balance, my annual CTC, my monthly income and my investments. I gave them all the needed information, the victim told police," the report quoted her as saying.


Under the guise of official procedure, Chauhan coerced her into taking an oath of confidentiality, prohibiting her from disclosing any information to law enforcement or others until the investigation concluded  as this was a 'highly sensitive case.' 


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Bengaluru Lawyer Coerced To Strip For 'Narcotics Tests', Blackmailed With Video


Describing the harrowing experience, the victim stated, "For an entire day I was watched even during the night. I was asked to keep the camera on and sleep."


On April 4, she was coerced into transferring Rs 10,78,993 from her bank account to another account. The following day, two separate transactions were made on her Amazon account amounting to Rs 2.04 lakh and Rs 1.74 lakh.


The situation escalated when she was compelled to strip and pose nude on camera under the pretext of conducting "narcotic tests." According to her complaint, she was threatened to continue doing so or else she and her family would be arrested in a drug case, PTI reported.  


Moreover, she divulged that the alleged officer resorted to blackmail, threatening to sell the compromising video if she did not transfer Rs 10 lakh by a specified deadline, as per her complaint.


The frightened lawyer disconnected the call around 1:15 am on April 5 and subsequently reported the incident to the police. A case has been registered under the Information Technology Act, with investigations ongoing, TOI reported.


Responding to the incident, a spokesperson for FedEx told TOI that the company never solicits personal information through unsolicited phone calls, mail, or email for shipments unless requested or initiated by customers. The spokesperson advised individuals receiving suspicious calls or messages to immediately contact local law enforcement authorities.


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