NEW DELHI: Delhi Police have arrested two alleged fraudsters from the remote high-altitude region of Sarchu, located between Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh, following a real-time interstate operation. According to cops, they were using bank accounts of rural labourers to launder and conceal proceeds of cyberfraud. The accused – Imran Ansari (43) and Mansoor Ansari (55) – are residents of Jharkhand. Police said on Sept 2, 2024, a woman reported she was contacted by an individual posing as an executive from an online coaching institute, after which Rs 69,953 was fraudulently siphoned from her bank account. A case was registered under the relevant IPC section related to cheating. DCP (crime) Harsh Indora formed a team under ACP Anil Sharma. During the investigation, detailed technical surveillance and financial trail analysis revealed that the defrauded sum was dispersed across several bank accounts located in remote villages of Dumka and Godda districts in Jharkhand. These accounts were found to be registered in the names of daily wagers.
Poll
Do you think that rural labourers are sufficiently educated about the risks of cyber fraud?
Field-level inquiries suggested that the labourers were engaged in infrastructure projects, and their bank accounts were opened under the supervision of site contractors. Crucially, account credentials, including ATM cards and passbooks, were allegedly retained by the suspects for illicit use in cyberfrauds. A team was dispatched to Jharkhand, where cops posed as locals and discreetly traced and raided the suspects’ residences. The team apprehended Ramjeet, whose account received Rs 20,005, and Badri Rai, whose bank account received the cheated amount of Rs 69,953. Further analysis revealed that Mansoor Ansari and Imran Ansari fled Jharkhand to Himachal Pradesh and were heading to Ladakh to evade arrest. A parallel team pursued them in a private vehicle, and after a chase of over 800km via Manali-Rohtang-Keylong, it successfully traced the suspects to Sarchu. The duo admitted to targeting labourers in Jharkhand, getting their bank accounts opened under false pretences, and using those for routing and withdrawing cyberfraud proceeds. They revealed the names of two more alleged masterminds, who are expected to be arrested soon.The accused disclosed they would bring labourers from remote areas of Jharkhand for work, get their bank accounts opened under the pretext of receiving salary, and get them to surrender their ATM cards. These accounts were subsequently exploited to carry out cyberfraud transactions. To evade detection, the fraudsters allegedly frequently relocated to remote areas after completing the transactions.
About The Author
