Chandigarh: With the arrest of two Nigerian men from Delhi, the Cyber Crime Cell of the Punjab Police has successfully managed to bust an international cyber fraud racket wherein imposters were using profiles pictures and names of VVIPs on their WhatsApp profiles to dupe government officials and common people, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav here.
The modus operandi used by imposters was sending personal WhatsApp messages to innocent people, mostly Government officials, asking for financial favours in form of Amazon gift cards, PayTM or any other digital payment method. In the last few months, fraudsters have duped numerous people by impersonating as Cabinet Ministers, DGP Punjab, Chief Secretary Punjab, and other IAS and IPS Officers.
With these arrests, the Punjab Police has dug up another trail, leading to deep-rooted cyber fraud nexus spreading from Delhi and involving mainly Nigerian with a sprinkling of Indian associates, DGP Gaurav Yadav disclosed. Those arrested have been identified as Anioke Hyginus Okwudili alias Poka and Franklyn alias William, both residents of Lagos in Nigeria and currently residing in Delhi.
Divulging more details about the operation, IG, Cyber Crime, RK Jaiswal said that after an extensive hi-tech investigation and reliable information from WhatsApp, the State Cyber Cell has got some major leads following which three different Police teams were constituted and assigned tasks of financial, technical and fieldwork to investigate and nab the accused persons. He said that the Police team under the supervision of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Cyber Crime Samarpal Singh comprising two inspectors and other police personnel was sent to Delhi. /BI/
