The growing menace of cyber fraud has struck Malkangiri again, with a local teacher losing Rs6.5 lakh to scammers pretending to be law enforcement officers. The simplicity and trust of the district’s residents have made them frequent targets of elaborate cons, often going unnoticed until significant financial damage has been done.
Ashok Kumar Tripathi, a teacher from Durgagudisahi, became the latest victim. On October 24, 2024, he received a call from three individuals posing as officers from the Mumbai Police. They claimed his phone number was linked to 17 criminal cases and that his Aadhaar card was under investigation for fraud. They threatened him with immediate arrest unless he paid to “clear his name.”
Fearful and confused, Tripathi transferred Rs2 lakh to an ICICI Bank account listed under “Orbit Export and Import” and another Rs4.5 lakh to a Bandhan Bank account in the name of Mukesh Kumar on October 28. The fraudsters cut off contact immediately afterward. Realizing the scam, Tripathi filed a police complaint on March 8, 2025.
Malkangiri police responded swiftly. Inspector-in-Charge Rigaan Kindoo formed a special team that tracked down the suspects in Rajasthan. Three men—Mukesh Kumar (22), Surendra Kumar (20), and Naresh Kumar (21) from Bahukirani village in Jaisalmer—were arrested.
Authorities recovered a cache of fake documents used in the scam, including forged police IDs, FIRs, Supreme Court notices, and Enforcement Directorate (ED) papers. The accused were produced in court today.
This incident is not isolated. In a recent high-profile case in the same district, another teacher lost Rs87.63 lakh to cybercriminals. With a spike in cyber scams, officials are urging the public to report suspicious messages or calls immediately and to verify any legal claims with local authorities before making financial transactions.
