Cyber Cops Arrest 43 Fraudsters in December
Hyderabad: Hyderabad cyber crime police said they arrested 43 cyber criminals from 15 states last December and recovered Rs.2.05 crore they had stolen from various victims. This crackdown was launched following an increase in cases of ‘digital arrests’, particularly targeting senior citizens.
In December, 144 FIRs were registered based on 266 complaints received through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP), while regional cyber cells registered an additional 80 FIRs, data released on Thursday showed.
The arrested individuals were found to be part of a massive pan-India network that recorded suspicious transactions worth Rs.73 crore in bank accounts in 119 cases across the country.
In one of the ‘digital arrest’ cases, fraudsters stole Rs 1.95 crore from a 75-year-old housewife by impersonating telecom and government officials and making false allegations against her husband.
Under psychological pressure, he transferred the huge sum through RTGS for “verification”. Police tracked down and arrested three accused, namely Saiyad Soyab Jahid bhai, Belim Anas Rahim bhai and Dinesbhai Keshubhai Babariya from Bhavnagar, Gujarat.
In another case, a senior citizen was defrauded of 59 lakh rupees after receiving WhatsApp calls from fraudsters posing as police and judicial officers. They sent false court notices claiming he was involved in human trafficking and money laundering. Two accused from East Godavari, Andhra Pradesh – Surampudi Chandrasekhar and Emandi Venkat Naveen – were arrested in connection with this scam.
An analysis of 34 major cases detected in December shows that investment fraud remains the most common (19 cases), followed by others, including digital arrests (8), social media fraud (3) and hacking and hacking. Police seized 23 mobile phones, laptops and many checkbooks and bank cards during the raids.
