Pune: The Pimpri-Chinchwad Cyber Cell has arrested four suspects from Ahmednagar, Jalgaon, and Surat for defrauding a woman of ₹24.99 lakhs.
The suspects tricked the woman by claiming that a parcel in her name containing drugs was being sent from Mumbai to Iran.
The suspects, identified as Swarup Ashok Khambe (42, Kopargaon, Ahmednagar), Pushkar Chandrakant Pakhale (Chkhali Sgaon, Jalgaon), Monik Bharatbhai Rangoliya, and Kaushik Mansukhbhai Borad (both from Surat), were apprehended following a complaint lodged by a 38-year-old woman from Baner at the Hinjewadi police station.
According to Deputy Commissioner of Police Sandeep Doiphode, the complainant received a call from an unknown number, with the caller posing as a representative of FedEx Courier Company, Mumbai.
The caller claimed that a courier from Mumbai to Iran in her name contained drugs and transferred her call to another suspect pretending to be from the Narcotics Department.
The second suspect informed her that the parcel had been detained by customs and that she needed to clear it either by visiting Mumbai or through an online Skype call.
Through the Skype call, the suspects accessed her mobile screen and extracted confidential information from her bank account, transferring ₹24.99 lakhs under various pretexts.
The Hinjewadi police began investigating the case, with parallel investigations by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Cyber Cell. The cyber police traced the suspects' bank accounts, leading to their identification and arrest from Ahmednagar.
Further investigation revealed information about their three accomplices, who were subsequently arrested from Jalgaon and Surat. The suspects' bank accounts had transactions amounting to over two crores, with 68 complaints registered regarding these accounts in India.
The operation was carried out under the guidance of Assistant Police Commissioner Vishal Hire, with Police Inspector Anil Devde, Assistant Inspector Pravin Swami, Sub-Inspector Sagar Poman, and constables Deepak Bhosle, Atul Lokhande, Nitesh Bichewar, Saurabh Ghate, Shrikant Kabule, and Swapnil Khanse involved in the operation.