Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], January 30 (HBTV): A cybercrime crackdown, led by DCP Cybercrime Kavitha, has resulted in the arrest of 52 individuals across 8 states, including three identified masterminds. Hyderabad Commissioner of Police, CV Anand, confirmed the operation's success in a detailed briefing.

In a statement, CV Anand revealed that the operation covered the states of Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, New Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, and Bihar.

'52 cybercriminals were caught and 3 of them were masterminds. 33 cases were detected in Hyderabad city, 74 cases in Telangana state, and 576 cases were detected in the entire country. Mainly they are trading frauds, digital frauds, investment frauds, and digital arrests... In these cases, a total amount of INR 88.32 crore was lost,' said Anand.

However, the police were able to freeze only about INR 3 crore.

'We could freeze only about INR 3 crore through the banking process. Many mobile phones, chequebooks, PAN cards, and other such paraphernalia have been seized,' Anand said.

The authorities' focus was not only on apprehending the criminals but also on seizing evidence, including mobile phones and financial documents, that were integral to the fraudulent activities.

Further investigations revealed that some of the frauds were facilitated by the involvement of bank officials. 'Out of the 33 cases, three cases involve the activity of bankers. With the connivance of bank officials, fraudulent people could open accounts and then siphon off the money through mule accounts,' CV Anand explained.

As a result, three bank officials were arrested: Shubham Kumar Jha, a deputy manager at RBL Bank in Bangalore; Harun Rashid, an assistant vice president at Axis Bank, Bangalore; and Kata Srinivas, a sales manager at Kotak Mahindra Bank.

'With the connivance of bank officials, fraudulent people could open accounts and then they could siphon off the money through mule accounts,' said Anand. (ANI)