Eight people have been arrested in Noida, Uttar Pradesh after the police busted an international gang operating online gaming and betting applications. According to the police, they are yet to identify the people behind the fraudulent websites’ operations or where they are based out of. Meanwhile, the Cyberabad police has requested the banks to freeze the Rs 42 crore lying in the bank accounts of the individuals connected with the crime.
The accused were allegedly using websites and social media platforms to advertise their applications, inviting potential victims to engage in online gaming and betting, according to deputy commissioner of police (DCP), Kalmeshwar Shingenavar.
The family of a 19-year-old first-year student of Nizam College in Hyderabad complained to the cyber crime team in December that unidentified offenders had stolen Rs 44.2 lakh from one of their bank accounts. When the police looked through the information provided by the family, they discovered that the student had actually lost Rs 98 lakh, more than double of what was reported.
The police checked several payment gateways and bank accounts where the money was transferred. Based on technical clues they arrested the aforementioned eight suspects on Sunday who were operating out of Noida, as reported by The Times of India.
The arrested suspects were running the gaming sites from a rented Noida apartment, according to DCP for Cyber Crimes Riti Raj. They were also in charge of overseeing the registration process of the victims.
“The gang members also open bank accounts, obtain SIM cards in the names of poor and needy people, offering them money. The accused control the accounts used for transferring money from the victim’s side,” Raj added.
All the victims were initially lured in with little profits, but after a certain amount of time they started losing money while investing large amounts. A police official said, “The gaming on the websites is manipulated by the gang members.”
