logo
Retired scientist duped of Rs 1.29 crore in 'digital arrest' scam; 2 arrested

Retired scientist duped of Rs 1.29 crore in 'digital arrest' scam; 2 arrested

India Today11 hours ago
A retired scientist from Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly was kept under 'digital arrest' for three days and defrauded of Rs 1.29 crore by cybercriminals posing as CBI officers, police said on Sunday. Two members of the gang were arrested in connection with the case.The victim, Dr Shukdev Nandi, a former scientist with the Indian Veterinary Research Institute, was targeted through WhatsApp calls by imposters who threatened him and forced him to transfer large sums of money to multiple accounts over a span of three days.advertisementThe Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) arrested Pradeep Kumar Singh (50) and Mahfooz (21) from Lucknow. Authorities recovered two mobile phones, PAN and Aadhaar cards, and documents related to cryptocurrency wallets from their possession.
According to police, Singh is the director of a private firm and had opened a corporate bank account in the company's name at ICICI Bank. This account was used to receive the Rs 1.29 crore extorted from Dr Nandi.During questioning, Singh admitted to distributing the money within the gang and receiving commissions in USDT (cryptocurrency) through the Binance app, police said. He claimed to have earned 871 USDT so far.Mahfooz confessed he had opened a bank account on the instructions of an associate in exchange for commission and handed over the ATM card and SIM card to the gang. Around Rs 9 lakh linked to the fraud was deposited into his account.A case of cheating and extortion has been lodged at the Cyber Crime Police Station in Bareilly under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 66D of the IT Act.The arrests follow an earlier crackdown on July 5, when four members of the same gang were caught. Authorities are now investigating other bank accounts, crypto wallets, and additional gang members.- EndsTrending Reel
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Over 100 illegal arms seized in 18 months from across state
Over 100 illegal arms seized in 18 months from across state

Time of India

time19 minutes ago

  • Time of India

Over 100 illegal arms seized in 18 months from across state

1 2 Jaipur: From AK-series rifles to country-made pistols and even muzzleloaders, a wide range of illegal firearms continues to surface in police investigations across Rajasthan. This points to an evolving arms supply chain that caters to both local gangs and organised criminal groups. Since 2023, the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) seized more than 100 illegal weapons and recovered 2,115 cartridges from multiple districts. Police officials said many of these weapons were smuggled along a well-trodden corridor extending from Dholpur, near the Uttar Pradesh border, to Pratapgarh, which shares boundaries with Madhya Pradesh. "The gangsters and suppliers work as a closely knit community; they procure weapons both from Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh," said an official. Since June, notable recoveries include an AK-56 rifle seized from criminal Rajveer Singh and an AK-46 recovered from a suspect in Dholpur. In Churu, gangster Jitendra Singh alias Jeetu Jodi was caught with an AK-47 and two magazines. In a separate operation in the same district, Praveen Jyoti alias Praveen Commando—who carried a Rs 25,000 reward—was arrested with 18 illegal weapons, 16 magazines, and 160 cartridges. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Cách giao dịch ETH/USD mà không cần nắm giữ Ether IC Markets Tìm hiểu thêm Undo A major breakthrough came in Pratapgarh, where AGTF officials arrested gangster Salman Khan and arms supplier Rakesh Kumar, recovering 14 illegal foreign and country-made weapons, 10 magazines, and 1,880 live cartridges. This operation also led to the arrest of Ramashankar, a key illegal arms dealer in Uttar Pradesh. Police later arrested a UP-based gun shop owner who allegedly supplied ammunition to the network. Officials said that in several narcotics-related raids, weapons were also recovered, indicating that drug cartels are sourcing firearms alongside their trade. "In many such cases, weapons were seized alongside drugs," said an AGTF officer. According to sources, the seizure in Pratapgarh was one of the largest in recent years, with over 1,800 rounds of ammunition recovered, further exposing the supply networks that support criminal operations across the region. AGTF officials said that after they arrested the gun shop owner from Uttar Pradesh, they also began to keep an eye on similar businessmen in Rajasthan. "We found that the accused arrested from Uttar Pradesh used to siphon off ammunition to gangs by forging his record sheets. After that, we decided to examine other gun house owners in Rajasthan," said an official.

Tinsukia techie held for creating, circulating morphed pics using AI
Tinsukia techie held for creating, circulating morphed pics using AI

Time of India

timean hour ago

  • Time of India

Tinsukia techie held for creating, circulating morphed pics using AI

Dibrugarh: Dibrugarh police have arrested a mechanical engineer from Tinsukia for creating and circulating morphed explicit images of a woman using artificial intelligence tools. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The case has sparked widespread outrage across Assam. The accused, identified as Pratim Bora, used advanced AI platforms to superimpose his former classmate's face onto pornographic content, falsely portraying her as being involved in the adult entertainment industry. The malicious campaign triggered outrage across Assam, with social media users condemning the act. Police investigations confirmed that the content was fabricated and intended solely to tarnish the woman's reputation following a personal fallout. The arrest was made on Saturday night following a formal complaint filed by the victim's brother. Dibrugarh SSP in-charge Sizal Agarwal, while briefing the media on Sunday, revealed that the cybercrime unit's swift investigation led to Bora's arrest. "The accused Pratim Bora used the image of the victim to generate several obscene content and pornographic materials using AI softwares. It was made to appear as if the victim had joined the porn industry which turned out to be completely false during investigations," Agarwal said. The investigation revealed that Bora had utilised sophisticated AI-powered image generation platforms to produce the doctored images. He also created multiple fake social media profiles and Gmail accounts to upload and disseminate the content across various platforms. What began as harassment escalated into a profit-driven scheme when Bora discovered he could monetise the fabricated content through subscription-based adult platforms. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "Initially he was only trying to harass her but when he started to earn money through subscription based adult content using her morphed content he became greedy and began to continue it," Agarwal said. During interrogation police said they had discovered that Bora had earned around Rs 10 lakh through the morphed content. The campaign also falsely claimed she was residing in the US and involved in adult media. During the arrest, police seized substantial digital evidence from the accused, including two mobile phones, one hard disk, one laptop, one tablet, one pen drive, one card reader, several SIM cards, and multiple credit and debit cards. The case has been registered at Dibrugarh Police Station under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including sections 336(4), 356(2), 74, 75, 294, and 351(2). These provisions cover a comprehensive range of offences including cyber harassment, defamation, obscenity, and invasion of privacy. Bora was produced before the district and sessions court of Dibrugarh which sent him to five-day police custody.

ATS expands probe into Chhangur Baba's syndicate, teams sent to Maha, Nepal border
ATS expands probe into Chhangur Baba's syndicate, teams sent to Maha, Nepal border

Time of India

timean hour ago

  • Time of India

ATS expands probe into Chhangur Baba's syndicate, teams sent to Maha, Nepal border

Lucknow: In the ongoing investigation into the alleged religious conversion syndicate run by Jamaluddin, also known as Chhangur Baba, the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) has dispatched multiple teams to and districts bordering Nepal to unravel the network's financial and logistical links. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now According to top ATS sources, a team led by a deputy superintendent of police has been sent to Maharashtra to investigate properties worth over Rs 100 crore allegedly linked to Chhangur Baba's network. These properties, including high-value real estate in Pune, are suspected to have been purchased or encroached upon through benami transactions. A contentious land deal allegedly linked to the Chhangur Baba's network also implicates Sangita Devi, wife of a Balrampur court clerk, as a beneficiary in a profit-sharing agreement. ATS officials said they are working in coordination with the Maharashtra Police to verify property documents and question individuals associated with Chhangur Baba's operations in Nagpur, including his key aide, Idul Islam. Described as Baba's right-hand man in Maharashtra, Islam wields considerable political influence and allegedly runs an NGO through which illegal religious conversions were conducted. He is among the accused named in the FIR registered in Lucknow. Another accused Ramzan from Gonda is also under the scanner. Known as a middleman, Ramzan reportedly sourced vulnerable individuals for conversion and is suspected to have strong ties with operatives in districts along the Nepal border. "An ATS team will also visit border districts, including Pilibhit, Lakhimpur Kheri, Bahraich, Shravasti, Balrampur, Siddharthnagar and Maharajganj. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now We have credible inputs of associates of Baba operating from these regions," said a senior officer. Chhangur Baba and his associate Neetu, also known as Nasreen, are currently in seven-day ATS custody. They are being interrogated on financial transactions, illegal property acquisitions and their syndicate's operational blueprint. Following the demolition of Chhangur Baba's palatial property in Utraula, Balrampur, valued at over Rs 3 crore, authorities are now searching for other properties that may have been acquired through illicit means. ATS arrested Chhangur Baba and Nasreen from Balrampur on July 5. A cash reward of Rs 50,000 had been announced for information leading to Chhangur Baba's arrest.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store