In a significant crackdown, the Cyber Crime Unit of the Odisha Crime Branch arrested 15 cybercriminals involved in a large-scale fraud scheme. These individuals lured unsuspecting victims with promises of high returns on investments in cryptocurrency, stocks, and IPO shares, said a senior official from the Odisha Police.
“We have arrested 15 members of this gang, which operated fraudulently across several states in India,” stated Arun Bothra, Additional DGP of the Crime Branch in Bhubaneswar. “The masterminds, Tushar Sharma and Bhavesh Thakur, were nabbed in New Delhi, while the other 13 suspects hail from various parts of Odisha.”
The arrested individuals include Ranjit Kumar Bal from Kendrapara, Dillip Kumar Lenka from Balasore, Sunil Prasad from Ganjam, and Bishikesan Padhy alias Siba from Rayagada. They, along with others like Kalandi Singh, Sudhansu Bhusan Pattanaik, Udaybhanu Ghadei, Jiten Barad, Bharat Bhusan Chakra, Bikash Chandra Rout, Uttam Kumar Sahu, Satya Ranjan Sahoo, and Amit Kumar Rout, assisted the ringleaders by opening bank accounts to facilitate fraudulent transactions.
This bust follows a complaint from a Bhubaneswar resident who lost over Rs 3 crore to the scam. The victim was initially contacted via Facebook on March 29 and invited to join a WhatsApp group promising high returns on investments. Convinced by the fraudulent claims, he transferred a total of Rs 3.04 crore to various accounts controlled by the cybercriminals until June 11, 2024. His requests to withdraw funds were met with demands for a 20% management fee on supposed profits, which he eventually realized was part of the scam.
Investigations showed that the cybercriminals targeted individuals through social media, inviting them to join groups on WhatsApp or Telegram for trading and investment discussions. Victims were tricked into opening fake trading accounts, where their investments appeared to grow on a bogus platform. Attempts to withdraw funds were met with additional extortion under various pretexts.
This operation highlights the critical need for caution in online investment schemes and demonstrates the relentless efforts of law enforcement to tackle cyber fraud.
