In a major breakthrough, Puducherry cyber crime police have arrested four individuals in Bengaluru, Karnataka, for their alleged involvement in a nationwide job scam that deceived over 3,400 victims. The accused—Shubham Sharma (29), Niraj Gurjar from Morena, Deepak Kumar (28) from Nawada, and Raj Gound (23) from Basti—were part of an extensive cybercrime network operating across multiple states.
The investigation began following a complaint from Ramesh Kumar, an engineering graduate from Lawspet. Kumar had responded to a Facebook advertisement promising job opportunities abroad, specifically an executive position in Canada with a lucrative salary of Rs 2.5 lakh per month. He was later instructed to pay various fees, including those for a visa, medical examination, and insurance.
Trusting the false promises, Kumar deposited a total of Rs 17.71 lakhs into several bank accounts. After receiving no updates, he reported the matter to the Puducherry Cyber Crime Wing.
A team led by Inspector B C Keerthy traced the fraudulent bank accounts to Murshidabad, West Bengal, but discovered that the linked address and Aadhaar number were fake. This led them to the suspects’ apartment in Bengaluru, where they were apprehended.
During interrogation, it was revealed that the accused were part of a larger network led by Azam Khan from Uttar Pradesh. This group had defrauded thousands, amassing over Rs 200 crores by promising overseas job placements. The suspects received 50% of the defrauded amounts as commission from Khan, allowing them to purchase luxury items, including a car valued at Rs 22 lakh and a flat costing Rs 16 lakh, for which they paid Rs 12 lakh in advance.
The police seized 21 cell phones, two passports, 42 SIM cards, a laptop, 64 ATM cards, and Rs 41 lakh in cash during the raid. The arrested individuals have been remanded in custody.
Police from nine states—including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Delhi, Assam, Telangana, and Uttarakhand—are also searching for the suspects in relation to other fraud cases.
The Puducherry Cyber Crime Police continue to investigate to identify more members of the network and recover the defrauded money. Senior Superintendent of Police (Crime and Intelligence) Kalaivanan has warned the public to be cautious about job advertisements that seem too good to be true.