Patna: Police in Bihar’s Nawada district have busted a cyber fraud racket that lured young men with false promises of payments of up to Rs 10 lakh in exchange for impregnating childless women, senior officials said on Saturday.
The scam, operating under the pseudo name “All India Pregnant Job Service”, ran through social media platforms and targeted unsuspecting men with offers presented as a paid “service”. Eight persons, including a minor, have so far been arrested in connection with the case.
The modus operandi of the cyber fraud was simple. The accused advertised the scheme on social media, promising easy money, free sexual access and assured payouts. Victims were told that even if pregnancy did not occur, they would still be paid half the promised amount.
The fraudsters attempted to make the offer appear legitimate by sharing photographs of women and models and using suggestive phrases such as “Playboy Service” and “Baby Birth Service”. Interested individuals were asked to pay a registration fee, followed by additional charges on the pretext of documentation and verification.
Once payments began, the demand for more money escalated on the pretext of medical tests, accommodation and other expenses. By the time the victims realised that they had fallen prey to cyber fraud, they had already lost substantial amounts.
Superintendent of Police (SP), Nawada, Abhinav Dhiman said that the accused, including Ranjan Kumar, a resident of Nawada, confessed to their crime and revealed the names of their accomplices. “Raids are underway to arrest other members of the racket. Four mobile phones which were used in the operation have also been seized,” he told the media.
The SP said that the victims did not lodge any complaint against the racketeers out of fear of social embarrassment, which helped the gang run its operation unabated. Rakesh Kumar, arrested along with a minor, told interrogators that they also used names such as “Dhani Finance” and “SBI cheap loans” to deceive people.
Kalyan Anand, head of the Nawada Cyber Cell, said that the gang had spread its tentacles across the country. “We are looking for 18 other members of the gang. The gang has been active and operating from Nawada for over a year,” he said, adding that a large number of people have fallen victim to the cyber fraudsters.
He, however, expressed surprise over people’s reluctance to register formal complaints against the accused. “Social stigma may be one of the reasons behind people’s reluctance to lodge complaints against the members of the gang,” he told the media.