Police bust cyber fraud gang in Rs 14L ‘digital arrest’ scam targeting retd BSNL officer

NEW DELHI: The Cyber Cell of the Delhi Police has busted an inter-state gang of cyber fraudsters for duping a retired BSNL officer by threatening him with a fabricated digital arrest.The accused Banshi Lal (20) and Prem Kumar (20), are both residents of Singoria Gomateshwar, Barmer, Rajasthan.

According to the police, the 57-year-old victim, Kailash Kumar Meena, a resident of Kishan Ganj, Delhi, received a WhatsApp video call from a person claiming to be a cybercrime officer from Mumbai. The fraudster falsely informed Meena that his bank account was being misused for illegal cyber activities and that law enforcement officers were en route to arrest him. Under pressure and panic, Meena transferred Rs 14 lakh into the bank accounts provided by the caller.

An FIR under section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered on April 22, and a detailed technical investigation was launched. The police team led by Inspector Manish Kumar and supervised by Inspector Rohit Gahlot, SHO Cyber Police Station North, and ACP Ratan Pal, tracked over 100 mobile numbers, IMEI details, and financial transactions across multiple platforms like PhonePe, Paytm, Swiggy, and Rapido.

After electronic surveillance and money trail analysis, Delhi Police traced suspects to Barmer, Rajasthan. Raids on June 15 led to the arrest of Banshi Lal and Prem Kumar, both college students. Banshi admitted to giving his bank account to Prem for Rs 8,000. Prem revealed he worked with Satpal Bishnoi and provided multiple accounts for laundering fraud money, avoiding ATMs to dodge CCTV. Two phones and SIM cards were recovered.