New Delhi, July 1 (IANS) The Cyber Police Station in Delhi’s South District has busted an organised ‘digital arrest’ cyber fraud syndicate and arrested three alleged members from West Bengal in connection with a Rs 7.22 lakh online fraud case, officials said on Wednesday.

The accused have been identified as Samiran Roy of South 24 Parganas, Prince Shaw of Howrah, and Samar Chatterjee of Howrah. According to the police, none of the three has any previous criminal record.

The arrests were made during raids conducted in South 24 Parganas and Howrah after an extensive financial and technical investigation. Police said the operation exposed the banking infrastructure of an interstate and international cyber fraud network.

The case came to light after a woman, identified as ‘M.S.’, lodged a complaint alleging that she had been duped of Rs 7.22 lakh in a ‘digital arrest’ scam. Based on her complaint, an e-FIR (No. 365/2026) dated June 6 was registered at Cyber Police Station, South District, under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

According to the police, the fraudsters impersonated officials from the Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and senior IPS officers. They allegedly kept the victim under continuous WhatsApp video calls, falsely claiming she was under investigation, and pressured her into transferring Rs 7.22 lakh through RTGS.

The investigation was carried out by a team comprising Sub-Inspector Udai Singh, Head Constables Vikas Kumar and Praveen Kumar, Constables Praveen Joon, Sultan and Subhash under the leadership of Inspector Hansraj Swami, SHO, Cyber South Police Station, and the overall supervision of the ACP (Operations), South District.

During the probe, investigators found that the defrauded money was initially transferred to a Bandhan Bank account allegedly operated by Samiran Roy and Prince Shaw before being routed through multiple bank accounts to conceal the money trail. Technical analysis of digital evidence also revealed links with cyber fraudsters operating from Thailand and Myanmar.

Police said the accused were involved in supplying mule bank accounts, SIM cards and banking credentials to organised cybercriminals. The syndicate allegedly arranged bank accounts into which victims transferred money after being intimidated through fake ‘digital arrest’ calls.

During the raids, police recovered six mobile phones, one HP Victus laptop, 18 debit and credit cards, seven cheque books, 15 SIM cards, two rubber stamps and six Aadhaar cards.

Delhi Police said further investigation is underway to identify other members of the syndicate, trace the proceeds of crime and uncover the network’s interstate and international links.

–IANS

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