Hyderabad Cybercrime Police Arrest 117 Accused in ‘Operation Octopus’ Drive

Hyderabad: City cybercrime police said they had registered 78 FIRs during February and arrested 117 accused from 16 states as part of ‘Operation Octopus’, a special enforcement drive. The accused were involved in 74 cases registered with the cybercrime police and were allegedly linked to 1,081 cases across India. Their bank accounts recorded transactions amounting to nearly Rs 139 crore, the city cybercrime police said.

Trading and investment fraud accounted for the majority of cases at 63, followed by six digital arrest scams, four OTP frauds and a social media-related fraud. Police said they had ensured the return of Rs 34,76,884 to victims during the month.

Police said they had seized digital and financial evidence, including Rs 36 lakh in cash, 221 mobile phones, 26 laptops, 115 cheque books, 141 SIM cards, 54 debit cards, 152 passbooks, 56 shell stamps, a cash-counting machine, five trade licences, six audit reports and three ledgers.

Additionally, zonal cyber cells across the city received 2,963 petitions through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) during February. Based on these, police registered 461 FIRs and arrested 11 accused in nine cases from different parts of the country. Officials said Rs 24,10,741 was returned to the.

Police said that during their cyber patrol operations, officers identified 124 Facebook and Instagram profiles running 539 paid advertisements promoting online gaming and betting applications targeting Indian users.

Officials said these advertisements lured users, particularly youth, with promises of easy money, bonuses and referral commissions. The identified profiles were reported to the platforms and taken down. Efforts are under way to trace the individuals behind these accounts.

Under C-MITRA initiative, cyber police said they made 2,396 calls to victims to provide guidance and support, while 257 Zero FIRs were registered based on complaints received.

ACB Arrests STO Accountant Khadeer for Bribe Demands

Hyderabad: The ACB said it had arrested Md Khadeer, senior accountant in sub-treasury office (STO), Mothkur in Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district, in a disproportionate assets case after he allegedly demanded and accepted several bribes from complainants. The ACB said it had booked Khadeer on March 12.

He had allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 10,000 from a complainant but later settled for Rs 5,000 to process a 38-day salary bill, amounting to Rs 1,09,384. The victim transferred Rs 5,000 online, but to the number of Khadeer’s colleague Niranjan, senior accountant. Subsequently, the accused allegedly used a threatening and coercive approach in connection with avoiding income tax deduction on the complainant’s February 2026 salary bill. The victim transferred another Rs 5,000 online directly to Khadeer’s number.

The ACB said that in a similar manner the accused demanded and accepted Rs 5,000 from another complainant on February 27, which was also transferred online. Consequently, Khadeer was arrested and produced before the Additional Special Judge for Trial of SPE and ACB cases court in Hyderabad. The case is under investigation.

Accused in Pocso case on run held

Hyderabad: A Special Sessions Court for POCSO cases at HACA Bhavan convicted Abdul Qayyum, a 23-year-old Arabic tuition teacher, for sexually assaulting an eight-year-old girl and sentenced him to five years of rigorous imprisonment. Judge Uday Bhaskar also directed payment of 1 lakh as compensation to the victim.

According to police, the accused was conducting Arabic home tuition for the minor at her residence when he misbehaved with the child in the drawing room. The girl began crying loudly, prompting her mother to question the tutor.

The accused denied the allegation and fled from the house. Later, the victim informed her mother that the tutor had given her a mobile phone to play games and behaved inappropriately with her. Based on the complaint, Chandrayangutta police registered a case and launched an investigation.

2 arrested with 1.3 kg of ganja

Hyderabad: The Secunderabad zone task force and Chilkalguda police arrested three alleged ganja peddlers and four consumers near the railway quarter in Chilkalguda. Police seized 11.53 kg of ganja, two grams of loose ganja and three mobile phones from

Subhash Mishal, Pabitra Bira, Bapun Bidika, all natives of Rayagada district in Odisha. Police said the trio procured ganja from a supplier identified as Malli who is currently absconding.

According to investigators, Mishal transported the contraband from Odisha to Hyderabad and, along with his associates, planned to sell it to customers in and around the Secunderabad station area.

Two killed in hit-and-run on NH-44 near Shamshabad

Hyderabad: Two persons, including a 17-year-old student on his way to write his Intermediate exam, died after a vehicle hit them from behind and drove away, on NH-44 near Pata Thanda in Shamshabad, at around 7.40 am on Thursday.

According to Shamshabad inspector Narender Reddy, the deceased, Vikki Singh, 22, a labourer from Kothur, and his 17-year-old friend, hailed from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Nikki resided here with his parents, the minor stayed with his elder brother.

Police said the student was on his way to Shamshabad to write his Intermediate first-year examination and Vikki was dropping him on a bike from Kothur. When they reached NH-44 near Madanapalle at the Pata Thanda boundary, an unidentified vehicle allegedly travelling at high speed rammed into their bike from behind.

The crash threw them both onto the road and the vehicle reportedly ran over them, leaving them dead on the spot. The driver of the vehicle fled the scene without stopping. Locals informed the police through a dial 100, who shifted their bodies to the mortuary for postmortem examination. A case has been registered against the unknown driver, police said.

Police also said that lack of CCTV cameras near the spot makes it even more difficult for them to find the accused or understand how the accident actually happened.

“For now, overspeeding appears to be the main reason behind the accident,” said the inspector.

Flyover Space Turns into Sports Arena

The Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation (MMC) has developed a sports arena under the Bairamalguda flyover. Box cricket, basketball, badminton / pickleball, volleyball courts and a skating rink have been developed while work is going on for the construction of toilets and changing rooms. Under Phase-2, the MCC intends to develop a football court, and a 10-metre rifle shooting range of six lanes. The portion of the flyover above the sports arena has been painted.

MMC officials said the initiative was taken for creating recreational space for youth and sports enthusiasts as well as to utilise public spaces effectively and promote a healthy, active lifestyle for citizens. Officials stated that the development of this sports arena will not only make modern sports facilities accessible to the children and youth of the city but also provide an opportunity to promote a healthy lifestyle.

Rythu Bharosa for rabi in 2 phases in March & April

The state government is planning to transfer Rythu Bharosa assistance amounting to about `9,000 crore to farmers’ bank accounts for the ongoing rabi season in two phases. In the first phase, around `4,500 crore will be credited later this month, while the remaining `4,500 crore will be released in April. Sources said over 70 lakh farmers will receive financial assistance of `6,000 per acre for the rabi season.

During the kharif season in June 2025, the state government had disbursed `9,000 crore under the scheme over a period of nine days. For the rabi season, the government has decided to release the amount in two instalments due to financial constraints.

During the recent municipal election campaign, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy had assured farmers that the Rythu Bharosa assistance would be released soon after the polls which were held on February 13.

Sources said mobilisation of funds for the scheme posed a major challenge for the government due to loan repayment commitments and the need to allocate resources for other welfare schemes and development programmes. In view of this financial pressure, the government has decided to distribute the Rythu Bharosa assistance in two phases during March and April.

Long queues at LPG agencies amid booking issues

Consumers queued up at several LPG agencies in Nizamabad district on Thursday after online booking services reportedly stopped working.

A large number of consumers rushed to a Bharat Gas agency, with queues extending onto nearby roads. Similar scenes were reported at a few other agencies in the city, where people lined up outside agency offices to obtain gas cylinders.

Police deployed personnel at some locations to prevent arguments or clashes and to ensure that the situation remained under control.

Officials said there was no shortage of LPG in the district and that the rush was triggered by rumours, prompting many consumers to visit agencies at the same time.

They clarified that there was no shortage of domestic LPG, though some agency managers said there was a limited supply of commercial cylinders at a few outlets.