Bhubaneswar: The Commissionerate police have arrested a man from Rajasthan for allegedly duping a city-based postal officer of Rs 11.80 lakh by posing as an official of the department of Telecommunication (DoT).
The accused has been identified as Kishore Rana (24) from Jodhpur.
Speaking to the media, Commissioner of Police (CP) Sanjeeb Panda said the victim received a call from an unknown person, who introduced himself as an officer of the telecom department, on June 7. “He told him that Mumbai Police are probing 28 complaints against his phone number, which was also found linked to a money laundering case related to former chairman of Jet Airways Naresh Goyal, who was arrested by ED in September 2023.
The caller then connected him through video call to a fake cop, who shared a bogus arrest warrant with the victim and tried to take advantage of his anxiety. “The scammers asked him to share his bank and property details. They demanded Rs 11.80 lakh from him as security deposit and assured to return his money in seven days once proved innocent in CBI court. Following which, the victim transferred the amount in two instalments,” the CP said.
The victim lodged a complaint with police when he did not get his money back and the phone on which he had received the call was found switched off.
Panda said that the accused, who had withdrawn the amount from bank through a cheque, has been arrested, and efforts are on to nab two other members of the gang. “Financial investigation into case has begun. We suspect their involvement in similar frauds in other states,” he said, adding that Rs 1.16 lakh in the bank account has been frozen.
