BHUBANESWAR: The Crime Branch of Odisha police has arrested seven inter-state cyber criminals including a woman for allegedly posing as trade analysts and cheating a sitting MLA of Rs 1.4 crore on the promise of providing him higher returns through investments in initial public offerings (IPOs) and over-the-counter (OTC) tradings.
The agency had registered a case on January 13 after receiving the complaint from the legislator, who was also a minister in the previous BJD government.
The accused - Jyothi Raju (39) and her husband Raju C (34), Ismail Rahaid (27) and Wasim (28) of Karnataka, Pattaraja S (34), Jegatheesh Radhakrishnan (40) and E Sakthikumaravel (50) of Tamil Nadu were arrested from the two southern states and brought to Odisha on Sunday.
Officials said the scamsters came in contact with the complainant through a group on WhatsApp and posed as trade analysts. They lured him on the pretext of providing higher returns through investments in IPOs and OTC trading, following which he deposited Rs 1.4 crore between November 13, 2024 and January 1, 2025.
Initially, the accused told the MLA that he had sustained losses but assured him that he would make profits if he continued to make the investments. However, when he attempted to withdraw his money, they demanded additional funds from him to release it. Suspecting it to be scam, he approached the agency, CB officers said.
Mobile phones, SIM cards, WhatsApp chat screenshots, Aadhaar and PAN cards, bank passbooks, cheque books and debit cards were seized from them. The CB officers have frozen Rs 15 lakh from various bank accounts of the accused persons and recovered another Rs 4 lakh.
The agency cautioned the citizens to remain alert against unsolicited investment offers on social media and messaging apps, and urged them to verify the authenticity of such schemes before investing in them. It advised them to immediately report on cyber helpline 1930 or visit the nearest police station if they noticed any suspicious activity.