BERHAMPUR: In a significant breakthrough, Berhampur police nabbed three fraudsters who targeted elderly citizens in an ATM card exchange scam during October and November last year.
The criminals, who stole Rs 1.83 lakhs from four senior citizens in B N Pur, Golanthara, and Town PS areas, were caught after being arrested for similar crimes in Hyderabad.
The fraudsters, Vakil Ali from Haryana, Farman from Uttar Pradesh, and Obaid Arif from Hyderabad, operated by following senior citizens into ATM booths. They would observe PIN entries while pretending to be regular customers, then craftily swap victims’ genuine cards with inactive ones. Their identities were confirmed through CCTV footage from Berhampur ATMs, which matched recordings from their recent arrest in Telangana.
Following their arrest, a special team from Berhampur police travelled to Telangana, where the accused confessed to their crimes. Police have recovered Rs 1.15 lakh, which has been returned to the victims. SP Dr Saravana Vivek M confirmed that remand reports will be filed, and the accused, currently in custody in Telangana will be brought to Berhampur for further legal proceedings pending Court orders.