A cyber-fraud investigation in West Bengal’s Chandannagar Commissionerate area has led to the arrest of 12 people, including a former computer engineer who left a high-paying job at a multinational information technology company, police said on Tuesday.
The arrests followed a police-initiated case based on complaints received through multiple Central and state government portals. The investigation began earlier this month across the Chandannagar Commissionerate area, and police said all the arrested people and complainants are residents of the jurisdiction.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Detective Department) Rupantar Sengupta said at a press conference that investigators had recovered eight debit and credit cards, four PAN cards, 12 bank-related documents, three mobile phones and seven SIM cards from the accused. Police have not disclosed their names or identities, citing the interests of the investigation.
According to the police, the arrested people are suspected to have operated as part of the same cyber-fraud network, although all of them were not necessarily personally known to one another or in regular contact. One of the arrested people has a previous criminal case, while the others are believed to be new to criminal activity, police said.
Investigators allege that the group primarily targeted elderly people and residents who were less familiar with digital technology. Different members allegedly played different roles, including luring small business owners with promises and persuading bank customers to rent out their accounts in return for money.
Police said more than Rs 20 lakh had allegedly been withdrawn from the bank accounts of several people through the network. The money has not yet been recovered, according to the investigators. A person suspected of being involved in the case has also been detained and is being questioned.
The police are examining possible interstate links through a specialised portal. Investigators are also looking into why the former information technology employee allegedly entered cybercrime after resigning from a computer-engineering position at a recognised technology company.
Sengupta warned residents not to share one-time passwords received on their phones with strangers. He also advised people not to click on suspicious WhatsApp messages or links claiming to be from banks or life-insurance companies. Police cautioned that allowing another person to use a bank account in exchange for a commission could expose the account holder to legal and financial risk.
