Digital arrest scam: SC stops bail for accused defrauding senior lawyer

Guwahati: The Supreme Court on Monday directed lower courts not to grant bail to individuals accused of defrauding a 72-year-old lawyer of Rs 3.29 crore through a sophisticated digital arrest scam.

Appearing before a Bench led by Justice Surya Kant, the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association, represented by its president, advocate Vipin Nair, explained that the scamsters had convinced the senior lawyer with calls that appeared “genuinely official” at the time.

Justice Kant, visibly affected by the details of the case, described such targeted scams on senior citizens as deserving “unusual orders.”

He emphasized the need for stern judicial action, noting, “We must deal with these cases firmly to send the right message. Extraordinary phenomena require extraordinary intervention.”

Advocate Nair told the court that the elderly lawyer had lost her entire savings in the scam. The accused, arrested following an FIR registered in May this year, were on the verge of release on statutory bail when the Supreme Court intervened.

During a hearing on November 3, the court reviewed a confidential report revealing that fraudsters had already swindled over Rs 3,000 crore from victims, predominantly elderly, through digital arrest schemes.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, highlighted the widespread social and economic fallout of these scams, stating that their impact had exceeded official expectations.

Justice Kant further affirmed that the judiciary would issue strict orders to empower investigative agencies in tackling the perpetrators.

In previous proceedings, the apex court had suggested assigning the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate the growing menace of digital arrests, in which fraudsters impersonate judges and police officers using forged documents.