In a major breakthrough, a dedicated team led by Inspector Satender Poonia and Inspector Sohan Lal of the ISC/Crime Branch busted an organised cyber-fraud racket that was impersonating officials of Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) to dupe unsuspecting victims by luring them into installing malicious mobile applications.
Key Highlights:
• Three accused persons namely Bickey Mandal @ Vicky (22 years), Sumit Kumar Singh (26 years) and Rajeev Kumar Mandal (22 years) have been arrested in FIR No. 004/26, u/s 318(4)/319/3(5) BNS, PS Crime Branch, Delhi.
• The accused cheated a 61-year-old retired Army officer by impersonating IGL representatives and fraudulently inducing him to install a malicious APK file, resulting in a wrongful loss of ₹91,449/-
• Technical analysis revealed organised and coordinated cyber fraud activity using multiple devices and SIM cards.
• A total of nine mobile phones were recovered from the accused persons. Digital extraction from seven devices revealed victim details and multiple fraudulent APK files impersonating reputed organisations such as IGL, SBI YONO, RTO Challan and Tata Power.
• The accused persons have been found linked with 35 cyber fraud complaints registered on the NCRP portal, pointing towards habitual involvement in organised cyber-crimes.
Profile:
• Bickey Mandal @ Vicky Age: 22 years, R/o Senraliah Nodiha, Asansol, Paschim Bardhman, West Bengal, was found to be operating multiple mobile numbers and devices used for fraudulent calls and dissemination of malicious APK files.
He is previously involved in FIR No. 37/2024, u/s 419/420/406/379/411/120-B IPC, registered at PS ADPC Cyber Crime, Asansol District, West Bengal.
• Sumit Kumar Singh Age: 26 years, R/o Lataiya, Post Sinduri, PS Narayanpur, District Jamtara, Jharkhand: Multiple mobile phones were recovered from his possession. Digital data analysis indicates his active role in coordinating fraudulent communications and handling compromised digital resources. He is previously involved in 1.) FIR No. 50/2015, u/s 406/420/467/468/471 IPC & 66 IT Act registered at PS Narayanpur, Jamtara District, Jharkhand and 2.) FIR No. 485/2018, U/s 354 IPC, PS Deoghar, Jharkhand.
• Rajeev Kumar Mandal Age: 22 years, R/o Ringochingo, Post Patrodih, PS Karmatar, District Jamtara, Jharkhand: He was found in possession of multiple mobile devices and was actively involved in the execution of the cyber fraud in connivance with co-accused persons.
The Operation:
On receipt of a complaint regarding cyber fraud, FIR No. 004/26 was registered at PS Crime Branch, Delhi, and investigation was taken up. Acting on credible technical inputs, a dedicated team was constituted under the leadership of Inspectors Satender Poonia and Sohan Lal, and under the close supervision of ACP Ramesh Lamba, comprising SI Mukesh Kumar, SI Rakesh Kumar, SI Neeraj Choudhary, HC Dalbir, Ct. Ankit and Ct. Ravi Kumar.
Based on sustained technical surveillance and field verification, the accused persons were traced and apprehended from Asansol, West Bengal.
Modus Operandi:
The accused persons impersonated themselves as representatives of reputed utility service providers and contacted victims telephonically. Victims were fraudulently induced to install malicious APK files, which enabled unauthorised access to banking credentials and facilitated fraudulent financial transactions.
Further Investigation:
Further investigation is in progress to analyse the complete digital trail, identify additional victims, recover proceeds of crime and trace other persons involved in the syndicate.
(ADITYA GAUTAM)
Dy. Commissioner of Police
Crime Branch, Delhi