Bhubaneswar: The Cyber Crime Unit of Odisha Crime Branch Wednesday arrested three directors of two fintech companies in a cyber fraud case of crypto investment.
The three arrested were running Fintech Companies and became a part of cyber fraud by facilitating the quick transfer of money to the virtual accounts of cybercriminals.
Crime Branch sources said Sumit Kumar Das and Amiya Ranjan Satpathy of Bargarh in Western Odisha and Sidharth Satpathy of Bhilai, Chhattisgarh, have identified themselves as Directors of two Fintech companies.
Sumit Kumar Das and Amiya Ranjan Satpathy were directors of PayInc Fintech Company, while Sidharth Satpathy was the director of Fynpe.
A victim of the cyber fraud on May 5, 2023, reported that he had received a WhatsApp call from a stranger lady suggesting to subscribe to a YouTube channel link to earn money.
The victim frequently received messages through Telegram App enticing to invest money for high returns, and he started paying the money believing that he was making investments and was trapped by the fraudsters.
The complainant deposited more than Rs. 54.75 lakhs between May 6 and May 23 last year to get high returns.
When the fraudsters pursued him for more and more money without any return, the complainant reported the matter to the Cyber Police Station at Crime Branch.
On his complaint, CID CB Cyber Crime Police Station registered a case under sections 419, 419/467, 468, 471, 120-B, and 34 of the IPC, r/w Sec. 66-C and 66-D of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and started an investigation.
Online verification of the NCRP portal of I4C, Ministry of Home Affairs has revealed that, apart from this case, 26 other complaints from different parts of the country have been registered against the registered bank account of Fynpe and 18 against the registered Bank Account of PayInc throughout India.
The Cyber Crime Unit of the Crime Branch cautions citizens to exercise necessary precautions while engaging in online investment activities and also to verify the authenticity of entities offering financial services.
The Crime Branch appealed to citizens that if they encounter any suspicious online activities or become victims of any kind of cyber fraud or crime, they should immediately report such incidents by dialling the Toll-Free 1930 Cyber Crime Help Line or logging on to www.cybercrime.gov.in and registering their complaint without delay.
UNI