Cops rescue Bhopal man from 6-hour ‘digital arrest’, saved from multi-crore scam

The Cyber Police of Madhya Pradesh rescued a man who was placed under “digital arrest” by cyber scammers for six hours in Bhopal, saving him from a multi-crore fraud. The incident marks a rare, possibly first-of-its-kind, live rescue of a person held in digital captivity.
State Cyber Cell Additional Director General Yogesh Deshmukh revealed that they received an alert about a resident of Bhopal’s Arera Colony, identified as Vivek Oberoi, who was put under “digital arrest” by cyber fraudsters.
Upon learning of the incident, Deshmukh directed Deputy Inspector General M Yusuf Qureshi to dispatch a police team to help Oberoi from getting scammed by the conmen. Oberoi, a corporate entrepreneur based in Dubai, was found locked inside a room in his own home under intense pressure from cyber scammers posing as senior officials.
According to Deshmukh, scammers impersonated officials from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), Mumbai Cyber Crime Branch, and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The fraudsters used fabricated identities, including a “TRAI Legal Cell Officer”, “Cyber Crime Branch Officer SI Vikram Singh”, and “CBI Officer IPS DCP Mahesh Kalwania”, to intimidate Oberoi by accusing him of alleged involvement in financial crimes.
Using claims of fraudulent bank accounts opened with his Aadhaar details and unsolicited marketing connections, they coerced him into downloading the Skype app, where he was subjected to hours of questioning.
During this time, the impostors even conducted a fake interrogation, attempting to gather sensitive personal and banking information from Oberoi. They warned him not to disclose the situation to his family, threatening arrest and harm if he failed to comply.
As the scam progressed, the Cyber Police team reached his residence and intervened in the video call.
Cops introduced themselves and demanded the scammers show proof of their identity. The fraudsters immediately disconnected the call, abruptly ending the digital detention.
Afterward, Oberoi was reassured by the police, who clarified that there is no legal provision for a “digital arrest” in India. They informed him that all notices and charges presented by the scammers were entirely fabricated.
A relieved Oberoi said that he might have lost crores had the rescue not occurred in time.
He also shared that due to the “digital arrest”, he was on the verge of canceling a crucial flight out of Madhya Pradesh. Later, Oberoi proceeded to the airport to catch his flight.