Deoghar: In a significant operation against cybercrime, Deoghar Police have arrested three suspected cyber fraudsters and seized several mobile phones and SIM cards allegedly used in online scams. The arrests were made during a raid conducted on June 1 as part of an ongoing campaign against cyber criminals in the district.
The operation was carried out under the guidance of Superintendent of Police Praveen Pushkar and the supervision of Cyber DSP Kailash Prasad Mahto.
According to police officials, information was received that a group of cyber criminals was posing as customer care executives of major e-commerce and digital payment platforms, including Flipkart, Amazon, Airtel Payments Bank and PhonePe, to defraud unsuspecting individuals. The accused were also allegedly using fake mobile numbers to lure people by promising benefits under the PM Kisan Yojana and facilitating loans.
Acting on the intelligence input, a police team conducted a raid and apprehended three suspects. Preliminary scrutiny of the mobile phones and SIM cards recovered from their possession reportedly revealed evidence linking them to cyber fraud activities.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Rajan Kumar Mandal (25) of Tarabahal in Jamtara district, Vikas Mandal (36) of Kasitand in Jamtara district, and Rohit Mandal (23) of Bara Nawada in Deoghar district.
Police said the accused allegedly impersonated customer care executives of digital payment services such as Google Pay, PhonePe and Paytm, enticing users with cashback offers. Victims were reportedly persuaded to generate PhonePe gift cards, which were then redeemed by the fraudsters for personal gain.
Investigators further suspect that the accused posed as officials of Airtel Payments Bank, falsely informing customers that their bank cards had been blocked and demanding money to restore services.
During the raid, police recovered seven mobile phones and seven SIM cards. Authorities are now conducting a detailed forensic examination of the seized devices to uncover additional evidence and identify possible links to other cybercrime cases.
The raid was executed by a team led by Sub-Inspector Bisheshwar Kumar of the Cyber Police Station, along with Assistant Sub-Inspector Shashibhushan Rai and personnel from Madhupur Police Station.
Police said further investigation is in progress.