A 74-year-old pensioner was duped to the tune of 37.90 lakh by scammers posing as agents of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The Hyderabad cybercrime police have registered a case.

Police said the woman received a call from a person claiming to be from Andheri police station in Mumbai. “The scammers told her that her phone number was linked to an FIR for sending harassing messages and advertisements. They threatened to deactivate all his mobile numbers linked to his Aadhaar card within 24 hours through the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI),” police said.

“The scammers shared fake documents, including fake letters from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), claiming that his bank account was involved in illegal money laundering linked to Naresh Goyal , the founder of Jet Airways,” the police added.

The scammers, posing as a “secret agency”, pressured the victim to reveal her banking details, threatening to freeze her accounts and even arrest her if she refused. “They further manipulated her by promising her a return on investment if she deposited her funds in an RBI account. “Under pressure, the woman withdrew her fixed deposit, which represented her retirement benefits, and transferred ₹37.90 lakh through RTGS,” police said.

Cybercrime police have advised the public to immediately call the National Cybercrime Helpline at 7:30 p.m. or register a case at cybercrime.gov.in. for immediate assistance in such cases.