New Delhi, June 29 (IANS) In a significant breakthrough, the Cyber Police Station of South-West Delhi has arrested a 24-year-old cyber fraudster, Malya Das, who had been absconding for the past four years.

Das, a resident of West Medinipur, West Bengal, was accused of duping senior citizens by tricking them into updating their KYC details.

The case dates back to 2021 when a complaint was filed on the NCRP portal by M. Bajaj, alleging an online fraud of Rs 1.51 lakh. Her grandfather had received an SMS warning that his SIM would be blocked unless he updated his e-KYC. He was asked to call a given number, and during the call, a malicious link was shared.

Once clicked, the TeamViewer app was installed on his device, granting the fraudsters access to his phone and OTPs. The complaint led to FIR No. 255/2021 under Section 420 IPC at PS Kishangarh. Initially handled by PS Kishangarh, the case was transferred in October 2024 to PS Cyber, South-West.

A team led by SI Opendar, HC Ashok, and Ct. Jeetu, under SHO Pravesh Kaushik and overall supervision of ACP Vijay Kumar, launched a fresh investigation.

Technical surveillance revealed that Rs 1 lakh of the scammed money was funnelled into RummyCircle accounts via Paytm.

By staging a loss in the online game using dummy accounts, the amount was transferred to an HDFC Bank account registered to Malya Das and later withdrawn through ATMs.

A total of Rs 27 lakh had been credited into the same account over time. Despite early raids, Das remained elusive, prompting the issuance of a Non-Bailable Warrant.

A subsequent raid in Keshiary, West Medinipur, led to his arrest. During interrogation, he confessed to his role and disclosed prior involvement in another cheating case registered at PS Bidhannagar, Kolkata, where he was jailed in 2022. His associate, Toofan, remains at large.

“Das, who studied up to 12th grade and dropped out of a diploma course, used gaming platforms and bank accounts to obscure the money trail. Further investigation is ongoing,” said Amit Goel, DCP, South-West District, New Delhi.

–IANS

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