Mumbai Lawyer Duped by Fake Crime Branch Officers, Loses ₹5 Lakh in ATM Scam

Mumbai:In a shocking incident in Mumbai, two unidentified individuals posing as crime branch officials have reportedly stolen ₹5 lakh from a lawyer, according to the Khar police.The scam unfolded outside an ATM, where the perpetrators deceived the victim under the guise of conducting an investigation.

The victim, identified as 37-year-old Tausif Sheikh, a lawyer residing in Bandra, lodged a complaint with the Khar police. Sheikh explained that his relatives operate a tourism business, managing tasks such as booking air and railway tickets and handling money transfers. The funds collected are deposited into the company’s account.

How the Scam Unfolded

Sheikh’s complaint reveals that his brother had given him ₹5.70 lakh to deposit into two customer accounts. Sheikh planned to make the deposit the next morning. After depositing ₹70,000 into one account at an ATM, Sheikh was approached by two men at the ATM entrance. The men, claiming to be crime branch officials, insisted that Sheikh accompany them for questioning.

According to police reports, the impostors forcibly took Sheikh into their car, searched his bag containing the remaining cash, and interrogated him about the money. They then drove him a short distance before abandoning him. Distraught, Sheikh returned home and informed his brother of the robbery. Sheikh's brother subsequently reported the incident to the police.

The Khar police have since filed a case against the two suspects and launched an investigation into the matter.

Related Incident

In a similar case earlier, an IT professional from Vasai fell victim to a scam where criminals posed as law enforcement officers. The scammers falsely accused the victim of being involved in a ₹500 crore scam, placing him under “digital arrest” and extorting ₹1.41 crore.

The Khar police are actively working to track down the suspects and have urged anyone with information about the incident to come forward.