‘Economic terrorism’: Nine online scammers get life sentence for collecting Rs 100 crore through digital arrest fraud

In a landmark ruling, a trial court in Kalyani, Nadia district of West Bengal, on Friday sentenced nine cybercriminals to life imprisonment for extorting ₹1 crore from a resident of Ranaghat by threatening him with a 'digital arrest' last year. This is among the first instances in India where scammers have received life terms for cybercrime, a TOI report stated.

Court calls it economic terrorism

The court accepted the prosecution’s argument that such cyber frauds amount to “economic terrorism.” The nine convicts, including one woman, were part of a larger scam network that allegedly cheated 108 people across India and accumulated ₹100 crore.

They were arrested from Maharashtra, Haryana, and Gujarat. The case was heard by Kalyani additional sessions judge Suberthi Sarkar, who had convicted the accused on Thursday and awarded the sentences under section BNS 338 for forging documents, along with 10 other offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Information Technology Acts.

Investigators cracked digital trail

Inspector General of Police (CID) Akhilesh Chaturvedi said strong digital evidence helped police identify the gang members. “Probe revealed the fraudsters were siphoning money through multiple bank accounts spread across different states. Police seized numerous passbooks, ATM cards, SIM cards and mobile phones during the operation. A detailed analysis of beneficiary accounts and phone numbers led us to uncover this sophisticated network,” he said.

Banks, police testified during trial

During the five-month trial, 29 witnesses from four different states appeared before the judge. These included the Station House Officer of Andheri (West) Police Station and branch managers from various banks—SBI, PNB, Canara Bank, Bandhan Bank, Federal Bank, and Ujjivan Small Finance Bank. The chargesheet spanned 2,600 pages.

Victims lost life savings

Special prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee told the court about the plight of other victims. “We told the judge how hard-earned money of two victims, one a retired professor and the other a retired state govt engineer, had been transferred outside the country. This was their life’s entire savings,” he said.

The defence said they would appeal the conviction in the High Court. Meanwhile, the convicted scammers are expected to face separate trials in other parts of the country.