Lucknow Police Arrest Three More in Major Cyber Fraud Case
The Cyber Crime police station in Lucknow made significant progress on Friday by arresting three additional members of a sophisticated cyber fraud gang. This group is accused of orchestrating a elaborate scam that defrauded a local resident of approximately Rs 90 lakh. The criminals employed a terrifying tactic of impersonating officers from the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad and threatening their victim with a fabricated "digital arrest."
How the Elaborate Scam Unfolded
The fraudulent scheme commenced on January 26 when Veena Bajpai, the wife of the victim, received a distressing phone call. The caller identified himself as Inspector Ranjit Kumar, claiming to be stationed at the ATS headquarters. He falsely accused Veena of involvement in serious crimes including terrorism and money laundering, creating immediate panic.
The perpetrators then instructed her to download the encrypted messaging application Signal. Through this platform, another individual posing as ATS officer Ajay Pratap Srivastava contacted the family. This fake officer conducted what he described as a "digital investigation," presenting counterfeit Supreme Court orders and seizure documents to lend credibility to his claims.
The Financial Deception and Transfers
The fraudsters convinced the couple that their bank accounts were under official scrutiny and needed verification. Under this false pretense, they persuaded the victims to transfer their entire savings. Between January 29 and February 9, the couple transferred approximately Rs 90 lakh through RTGS transactions to multiple bank accounts provided by the criminals.
Even after receiving this substantial amount, the accused had the audacity to demand an additional Rs 11 lakh from the already devastated victims. This escalation prompted the victims to finally report the crime to authorities.
Police Investigation and Previous Arrests
Upon receiving the complaint, Lucknow police launched a comprehensive investigation involving multiple techniques:
- Detailed bank account tracking to follow the money trail
- Advanced digital forensics to trace electronic communications
- Extensive surveillance operations to identify the perpetrators
Prior to Friday's arrests, police had already apprehended five gang members in two separate phases—three on February 17 and two on March 2. All previously arrested individuals have been sent to jail as the investigation continues to expand.
Latest Arrests and Their Roles
The three individuals arrested on Friday—identified as Dheeraj, Sparsh Kapoor, and Ashish Chandra—played crucial roles in the financial aspects of the scam. During interrogation, Dheeraj confessed to police that he helped open a bank account in the name of Rahul Pal at a Kotak Mahindra Bank branch in Rajajipuram. He admitted to acting on instructions from Sparsh Kapoor and receiving Rs 8,000 for this service.
Police investigations revealed that Sparsh Kapoor subsequently withdrew money from this account using cheques and handed the cash over to Ashish Chandra. For this intermediary role, Kapoor received a commission of Rs 10,000.
The Cryptocurrency Connection
Investigators discovered that Ashish Chandra played a particularly significant role in the money laundering aspect of the operation. He allegedly instructed Kapoor to withdraw Rs 2.45 lakh from the fraudulent account and deliver the cash directly to him. Most notably, police determined that Chandra was responsible for converting the illicit proceeds into cryptocurrency, attempting to obscure the trail and make recovery more difficult for authorities.
This case highlights the evolving sophistication of cyber crimes in India, where criminals are increasingly using official impersonation, psychological manipulation, and cryptocurrency to execute large-scale financial frauds. The Lucknow Cyber Crime unit continues its investigation to identify any remaining accomplices and recover the stolen funds.
