Fake call centre duping US citizens busted, 18 arrested

The Delhi Police’s Cyber North Police Station has made a significant breakthrough by arresting a perpetrator involved in duping references of MPs and MLAs with false promises of jobs in nationalised banks, the officials informed on Monday.

The accused, identified as Ashu Bajpai (24) from Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, was taken into custody by a specialised team of officers, led by SI Ranjit Singh and SI Guman Singh. The operation was carried out under the close supervision of Inspector Pawan Tomar, SHO Cyber North Police Station.

Sagar Singh Kalsi, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) North stated that the cunning modus operandi employed by the cyber fraudster involved gathering contact information of MPs and MLAs from Google searches and assuming the identity of a senior officer from SBI bank. The accused used fake SIM cards and saved his number on Truecaller as an SBI bank official. Subsequently, the fraudulent calls were made to the references of targeted MPs/MLAs, conducting telephonic interviews, and eventually luring them with offers for clerk positions in SBI bank.

Thus far, a total of five FIRs with a similar modus operandi have been lodged in multiple states, including Gujarat, Haryana, West Bengal, and Bihar. Furthermore, 16 additional complaints from across the country have been linked to the arrested accused. The case came to light when a young woman from the Sadar Bazar area lodged a complaint stating that she was swindled of Rs 25,000 with the

promise of a job at SBI Bank. In response, the Cyber North Police Station launched an investigation that eventually led to the arrest of Ashu Bajpai in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, Kalsi confirmed.

Interrogations revealed that the accused, in conspiracy with his brother Pradeep, hatched an elaborate scheme to defraud individuals seeking employment opportunities. The brothers specifically targeted acquaintances and friends of MPs/MLAs, requesting money for registration fees and security deposits. They would then provide the victims with QR Codes and instruct them to transfer money through Money transfer/E-Mitra shops, from where they later retrieved the cash, Kalsi said.

The Cyber North Police Station’s team successfully linked the arrested accused to multiple instances of fraud in various states. Alongside the arrest, law enforcement officials seized three smart mobile

phones, including the one used during the commission of the offenses, eight debit cards,

and five SIM cards, Kalsi mentioned.