Bengaluru police have arrested nine members of a cybercriminal network involved in part-time work-from-home (WFH) job frauds. This is a major arrest in the city, which witnesses around 50 cybercrime cases registered daily. The arrests came after nearly six months of meticulous investigation by the police. The criminal network was found to be complicit in around 135 cases of online job frauds reported in Bengaluru.
According to the police, the gang was involved in 2,143 cyber frauds across the country, with victims losing a total of Rs 158 crore. The police have managed to freeze Rs 62 lakh in 30 mule accounts that were opened by the fraudsters, primarily in Hyderabad.
The gang came under the police radar when a woman lodged a complaint on September 16 last year. The woman, who lost Rs 18.8 lakh to the fraudsters, had been trying to get some WFH jobs. The police officer in charge of the case decided to go beyond freezing the bank accounts and trace the fraudsters.
Inspector Hazaresh Killedar and his team managed to connect the dots and arrest the accused from Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. The arrested individuals are Aamir Suhail, Inayath Khan, Nayaz Ahmed, Adil Aga (all from Bengaluru), Syed Abbas Ali Khan (from Hyderabad), Mitul Manish Sha, Satish Kolangi, Naina Tarachand Raj, and Mihir Shashikanth Shah (all from Mumbai). Two alleged masterminds of the network, hailing from Mumbai and Gujarat, are still at large.
In addition to freezing the bank accounts, the police seized 11 cellphones, two laptops, and cheque books from the accused. Police commissioner B Dayananda stated that the fraudsters specifically targeted homemakers, unemployed individuals, and professionals seeking to earn more income.
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