Cybercriminals Threaten Gold Traders With ‘Digital Arrest’, Collect ₹4.20 Lakh
Irfan took a photograph of himself wearing a police uniform and used it as his WhatsApp and Truecaller display picture: Police
MAHABUBABAD: The Kesamudram police have arrested two cybercriminals who posed as police officers and threatened gold traders over the phone, collecting money under the pretext of a “digital arrest”.
Mahabubabad SP Dr P. Shabarish identified the accused as Sheikh Irfan, 29, and Chintalacheruvu Prashanth, 26, both from Nidamanoor in Nalgonda district.
Police said Irfan took a photograph of himself wearing a police uniform and used it as his WhatsApp and Truecaller display picture. He obtained the phone number of gold trader Bogoju Venugopalachari from Kesamudram mandal through Google and called him on September 10.
Claiming to be an SI from Parvathipuram police station near Vikarabad, Irfan allegedly told the trader that police had caught thieves and that the stolen gold had been purchased by him. He threatened to arrest the trader and damage his reputation unless he returned the gold as “recovered property”.
The accused allegedly sent a QR code through WhatsApp and collected ₹88,026 from the trader.
Police registered a case and identified the accused by analysing technical evidence, cybercrime portal details and bank transactions. During the investigation, the accused admitted to threatening several gold traders in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in a similar manner and collecting around ₹4.20 lakh between August 15 and September 15.
Police said cases had previously been registered against these men at several police stations in Telangana.
Police arrested the accused on September 20 under the supervision of Kesamudram circle inspector Y. Satyanarayana and sub-inspector K. Kranthi Kiran.
The SP advised people not to respond to suspicious calls made in the name of police, “digital arrest” threats or demands for money through QR codes. He urged victims of cyber fraud to immediately report the matter by calling 1930.
