NEW DELHI: The police on Wednesday arrested a mining engineer from Jharkhand who allegedly impersonated a bank official and duped people on the pretext of KYC verification after illegally gaining access to the victims’ mobile devices. They recovered many high-end Apple devices purchased with the cheated amount from the accused.
According to the police, a cyber fraud module operated by the accused involved impersonation of bank officials. The fraudsters would contact people under the pretext of KYC verification. In one such incident, a Delhi-based complainant was duped by Ajay Kumar Mandal, who gained access to her mobile device using a remote access application.
After obtaining access, the accused transferred Rs 8.10 lakh from the victim’s account. He purchased seven high-end Apple iPhones and a MacBook online using that money, often by redeeming digital vouchers to evade detection, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Aditya Gautam said.
The fraudsters deployed a network of IP addresses and mobile numbers registered under fake or proxy identities to obscure their digital trail. However, despite multiple layers of digital obfuscation, the police were able to trace IP logs, SIM usage, and IMEI data and identify the accused.
Through digital surveillance, two suspicious mobile numbers were detected operating from the same location in Giridih at the same time. Later, the accused, Mandal, was arrested. One iPhone purchased with stolen money was recovered from his possession.
Mandal holds a diploma in mining engineering and serves as the primary executor of the cyber fraud module, the DCP added.
Modus operandi
Impersonating bank officials, fraudsters would contact people under pretext of KYC verification
Using a remote access application, the cybercrime module would gain access to mobile devices
Deployed a network of IP addresses and mobile numbers registered under fake, proxy IDs to obscure digital trail
Proceeds of crime went into purchase of Apple iPhones, often by redeeming digital vouchers to evade detection