Unprecedented Cyber Fraud: Gang Extorts Money by Freezing Bank Accounts

In a shocking fraud case, a gang succeeded in extorting money from multiple individuals by spoofing email addresses that mimicked those of the Nagpur Cyber Police. By contacting banks and freezing their accounts, the criminals were able to secure payouts from their victims, authorities revealed.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (detection) Nimit Goyal announced on Wednesday that two suspects, Pradum Anil Singh and Shubham Pitambar Sahu, have been arrested. These fraudsters reportedly gained access to the details of at least 176 bank accounts and sent fraudulent emails to banks under the guise of the Nagpur Cyber Police. They claimed that the accounts needed to be frozen due to suspicious transactions.

The scam unraveled when ICICI Bank's assistant manager, Sweta Kumar Trilochan Panigrahi, noticed irregularities and informed the authorities. Nagpur Cyber Police launched an investigation, which led to the quick arrests. The fraud targeted accounts in banks like SBI, HDFC, and PNB, among others. Police suspect that insiders may have been involved in leaking banking information.

(With inputs from agencies.)