PANAJI
In a major breakthrough, the Cyber Crime Cell cracked a Rs 45 lakh cyber fraud case with the arrest of two persons including Uttar Pradesh native Vivek Gautam.
According to SP Cyber Crime Rahul Gupta, the case dates back to April 11, when the victim received a call from a person impersonating a Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India official. The caller claimed the victim’s Aadhaar card was being used for illegal money laundering activities.
The victim was then redirected to another number, where the scam continued with some others posing as Arambagh Police officers. These imposters issued a fake warrant in the victim’s name from the Enforcement Directorate. As per the complaint quoted by the police, the victim was forced to transfer Rs 45 lakh in different bank accounts.
Tracing the money trail, the Cyber Cell identified a bank account in Siolim belonging to Nikil Mane, who had withdrawn Rs 5 lakh. Mane, a 24-year-old bouncer, was issued a notice under Section 41 A CrPC. During questioning, the accused revealed that he was acting on instructions of Vivek Gautam.
Gautam, 32 year old native of UP residing in Siolim, was arrested shortly after returning to India from trips to the UK and Russia.
The investigation uncovered that Gautam had been trading cryptocurrency and facilitating illegal transactions through numerous bank accounts. He was found with two mobile phones and cheque books containing 17 signed blank cheques.
“Cyber Cell identified over 20 bank accounts linked to Gautam, many of which are connected to financial fraud cases nationwide. Nine of these accounts have already been frozen in other cases, with the remainder now frozen by the Cyber Crime Police Station,” Gupta said.
