CBI busts cybercrime racket targeting German nationals, 1 held from Siliguri
NEW DELHI: The CBI busted a cybercrime racket with the arrest of a man from Siliguri, West Bengal, who was allegedly involved in targeting German citizens since 2021 and swindling their money, an official said on Tuesday.
The accused, Rahul Shaw, was arrested based on input from the German authorities, the officials said.
The gang was allegedly targeting German nationals by gaining unauthorised remote access to the victims’ computer systems and bank accounts, under the pretext of offering tech support services,
the officials added.
The CBI has arrested a cybercriminal who was part of a gang that allegedly targeted German nationals since 2021 by gaining unauthorized remote access to the victims’ computer systems and bank accounts under the pretext of offering tech support services, an official said.
The group is believed to have swindled over EUR 646,000 from German citizens during 2021-22, which they channelled through cryptocurrency wallets, the CBI alleged.
“Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), as part of the ongoing Operation CHAKRA-IV, has successfully dismantled a sophisticated virtual asset-supported cybercrime network that has been targeting German nationals since 2021.
This operation was executed in close coordination with the German authorities,” the CBI spokesperson said in a statement.
The International Operations Division of the CBI had filed an FIR recently against Rahul Shaw, Shubham Sharma, Rajeev Budhiraja and unknown others under Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) read with Section 420 (cheating), among others of the Indian Penal Code, as well as under the provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2000, officials said.
The gang members falsely informed the victims that their bank accounts had been compromised.
The CBI arrested Rahul Shaw from Siliguri for allegedly manipulating victims into transferring EUR 646,032 to cryptocurrency wallets. Searches in Delhi, Kolkata, and Siliguri uncovered an illegal call centre in Darjeeling, leading to the seizure of digital evidence, mobile phones, and incriminating documents.
