Police in Nayagarh arrested Rudra Pratap Hota on Wednesday in connection with a cyber fraud investigation under Operation Cyber Kavach. In a related case, three other individuals were also taken into custody by Chandrasekhapur Police Station for allegedly participating in cyber fraud.
The investigation began after a complaint filed by Sub-Inspector Sulochana Mohanty as part of a coordinated operation by the CID, Crime Branch, and the State Cyber Crime Nodal Officer. Authorities discovered a suspicious transaction of Rs2,95,104 in a Union Bank account under the name of Rudra Pratap Hota. Further inquiry revealed that several other bank accounts linked to him were allegedly used solely to receive and transfer money obtained through cyber fraud, rather than genuine banking activity.
Police said Hota, allegedly acting under the influence of his brother Suryakant Pradhan, opened multiple accounts in Union Bank, Axis Bank, Canara Bank, Indian Bank, Bank of Baroda, and Bandhan Bank in the Gudipali area under the jurisdiction of Sarankul Police Station. Investigators stated that around Rs11 lakh was routed through these accounts over the past five months as part of a cybercrime network.
In another operation, suspicious accounts at the Maitri Vihar branch of UCO Bank were identified in connection with fraudulent transactions over several months. Police arrested Jitendra Kumar Rout and Shiba Sankar Dakua during a raid. Both revealed the involvement of Goutam Sahoo, who was also subsequently arrested.
Authorities said further investigation is ongoing to trace additional accounts and participants in the cyber fraud network.
