In what will come across as a really startling development, two men including a Nigerian national, have been arrested in India for duping people in the guise of providing jobs, matrimonials, and sending gift packages.
The accused, Obinna Fidelis Igboanugo, 27, who reside in New Delhi and Anil Kumar Pandey, a 36-year-old businessman, were arrested by the Cybercrime wing of Rachakonda Police.
The cybercrime team worked hard to nab the culprits and finally, by using advanced technologies, the duo were arrested from New Delhi and brought to Hyderabad on transit warrant.
Officials seized Rs.30,000, 65 debit cards, cheque books of 13 banks and 19 swiping machines from the accused while Rs 6.2 lakh (N3.4m) in Igboanugo’s bank accounts was frozen.
The Commissioner of Police, Mahesh Bhagwat said Obinna, who came to India on a visiting visa, learned from his Nigerian friends that he could earn easy money through Facebook by posing as an European with Indian citizens.
“For this, he downloaded pictures of European men and women from different Facebook accounts and created several fake FB accounts posting those pictures. He shared 10 per cent of the fraud money to Anil Kumar, who helped him in carrying out transactions,” said the commissioner.
Igboanugo destroyed the phone and SIM card soon after the victims transferred the money into his targeted accounts.
Police said he gathered bank account passbooks and debit cards, SIM cards from people with the help of some agents by paying them for each account on a regular basis without submitting any documents for making fraudulent calls and transactions. He thus procured more than 13 bank accounts with cheque books and debit cards.
Pandey, who is from Bihar, has been working at a hotel in New Delhi. He started a business of debit/credit cards/swiping machines during which he procured 13 bank accounts, 19 swiping machines and 65 debit cards.
The accused were booked under Sections 417,418,420 of IPC and Section 66 (C&D) of IT Act and sent to judicial custody.