In a major crackdown on cyber fraud, police have arrested 5 individuals accused of cheating a retired assistant commissioner out of ₹57 lakh through a “digital arrest” scam.
The incident came to light after the victim, Bhairav Prasad Pandey from Rambagh, received a call on April 10. The fraudsters posed as police officials and falsely accused him of transferring ₹70 lakh to a key suspect linked to the Pulwama terror attack. Using threats of arrest and serious consequences, they placed the victim and his family under pressure.
According to police, the accused created a situation of fear and isolation, forcing the victim to transfer ₹57 lakh in multiple transactions to different bank accounts. A complaint was finally registered on April 21.
Police commissioner Raghuveer Lal said, “Three days ago, Bhairav Prasad filed a case related to digital arrest. He was defrauded of approximately ₹57 lakh. After receiving the complaint, our team began the investigation and traced two bank accounts, based on which five people have been arrested.”
The arrested accused have been identified as Jai Prakash, Shubhankar Singh, Vikram Singh from Kanpur, Vinay Pratap Singh, and Raju Thakur from Jharkhand. Authorities recovered the SIM card used for the calls, bank account documents, and an Ertiga car during the operation.
Police further revealed that the main accused, Dawood Ansari, is a CRPF constable from West Bengal, currently posted in Raurkela, Odisha. His network is reportedly linked to cyber fraud groups operating from Cambodia, with connections across 5 states.
“Our team has contacted the CISF headquarters for his interrogation. He will soon be taken into custody for questioning. This cyber fraud network spans across 5 states, and international connections have also emerged. Mobile phones, a vehicle, and other items have been recovered from the accused,” the police commissioner said.
Investigators also found that the fraudsters installed an app on the victim’s phone to monitor his activities. He was instructed not to contact anyone, and even household staff were told to stay away.
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