Bhopal, Dec 9 : In a major breakthrough, the Crime Branch of Madhya Pradesh Police arrested four persons in connection with a 'digital arrest' case in which an Indore-based businesswoman was duped of Rs 1.6 crore.

The accused persons have been arrested from Maihar in Satna district and Surat in Gujarat. The bank accounts wherein the amount was transferred belonged to these four arrested persons, while one more accused in the case was yet to be arrested, police said.

Briefing the press on Monday, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP-Crime Branch) Rajesh Tripathi said, "Four persons have been arrested, of them, two are from Maihar and two others from Surat. They have been taken on police remand and are being interrogated."

He further stated that fraudsters had manipulated a 50-year-old woman by falsely implicating her in a money laundering case and kept her under 'digital arrest' for three days. "We are looking for the kingpin of the nexus," Tripathi said.

The victim was identified as Vandana Gupta (50), daughter-in-law of an Indore-based industrialist. The scammers had contacted the woman through a WhatsApp call and introduced themselves as ED officers on November 26.

The scammers had convinced her that she was linked to a money laundering case involving the founder of Jet Airways, who was reportedly arrested for financial fraud.

They threatened her with legal action, stating that black money was traced to her bank accounts. Furthermore, they claimed that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) also initiated an inquiry against her.

During three days of 'digital arrest', Vandana was forced to provide her bank details, business information, and ID cards. The scammers also forced her to break her fixed deposits (FDs) and transfer Rs 1.60 crore into their accounts, according to police.

After transferring the funds, the scammers further pressured the woman to take a gold loan and deposit the proceeds into their accounts. Vandana approached the Indore unit of Cyber Cell and filed a complaint on November 26.

/IANS