In a significant move against organized cybercrime, the Cyber Crime Wing of Tamil Nadu Police has arrested seven individuals nationwide as part of ‘Operation Hydra’. The suspects are linked to multiple fraudulent schemes including matrimonial scams, phishing attacks, digital loan frauds, and fake scholarship programs.
The coordinated operation spanned states including Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Assam, and Delhi. On May 28, Mohammed Dawood (21) and Mohammed Vaseem (34) were apprehended in Jaspur, Uttarakhand, for managing mule bank accounts that laundered money from matrimonial frauds.
In a phishing case registered at the State Cyber Crime headquarters, a victim lost Rs4.05 lakh after installing a malicious APK file disguised as an ICICI Bank customer service update sent via WhatsApp. This malware compromised the victim’s PAN and debit card information.
Following this, police arrested Pankaj Kumar (40) from Jharkhand on May 30, Hiteswar Biswas (30) in Assam’s Hojai on May 31, and Nihar Ranjan Nath (51) from Nagaon, Assam, on June 1. These individuals were linked to digital lending app scams and fraudulent bank account management.
A separate case uncovered by Thanjavur Cyber Crime Police involved a scholarship scam duping students with fake government aid offers. Scammers collected personal data and ‘processing fees’ before disappearing. Acting on this, Preeti Nicholas (30) and Meshach (19) were arrested from northeast Delhi on June 1. They allegedly forged documents to perpetuate the scam.
Authorities confirmed that nine arrests have been made in scholarship-related fraud cases over the last two months. Investigations continue as police work to dismantle the broader cybercrime network.
