On Friday, the Central Crime Branch (CCB) revealed the arrest of three individuals involved in a fraudulent scheme that duped victims out of a total of Rs 80 lakh by promising fake railway jobs as ticket collectors.
The suspects, identified as Laxmikanth Hosmani (46), Murali (42), and Kullappa Singhe (38), were arrested by the CCB’s Organised Crime Wing. A Bengaluru court has since sent them to judicial custody.
According to investigators, the fraud began in 2022 when Murali, an employee of a film production company, met Hosmani near the Vidhana Soudha. Murali claimed to have connections with high-ranking officials in the Railway Department and convinced Hosmani to recruit individuals for ticket collector positions at a fee of Rs 16 lakh per candidate.
Believing Murali’s fabricated story, Hosmani approached four of his relatives, persuading them to pay a total of Rs 80 lakh to Singhe in multiple installments. The fraudsters then sent fake appointment letters to the victims via email and postal mail.
It wasn’t until the victims tried to follow up on their job applications that they realized they had been deceived. They immediately lodged a complaint with the police, leading to the arrest of the three suspects.