Baleshwar: Three persons were arrested by the police in connection with an alleged cyber fraud involving over Rs 2.5 crore in Odisha’s Baleshwar district.
The accused persons have been identified as Basanta Kumar Jena and Jharana Jena from Jajpur district, and Harinath K from Tamil Nadu.
The arrested persons were interrogated by the police as part of efforts to establish the full details of the alleged fraud and identify others involved in the racket.
The case surfaced after a complaint was lodged at Soro police station in Baleshwar district over an alleged transaction involving Rs 2.50 crore. Following the complaint, police raided a hotel in the area and detained a man from Tamil Nadu for questioning.
During the investigation, police found that the alleged fraud was carried out through a Bank of India account. The Tamil Nadu accused, Harinath, had been staying in China since 2005.
Harinath came to Baleshwar allegedly on the instructions of his employer, who is based in China, and used a mule account in the suspected fraudulent transaction, police said.
Further investigation helped the police team identify the account holders allegedly linked to the transaction. Subsequently, two more people – Basanta and Jharana – (who are husband and wife) were arrested.
Police seized two mobile phones from the accused. The investigation was continuing to determine who else may be involved in the alleged cyber fraud and to ascertain the exact amount involved in the suspected transaction.
According to Balasore Additional SP Paresh Kumar Rout, the accused from Tamil Nadu frequently visits India to create mule accounts at different locations and allegedly collects crores of rupees through investment fraud under the direction of his boss in China.
During interrogation, police learnt that the couple from the Jenapur area of Jajpur were used to transact Rs 2.5 crore through their Bank of India account. A team went to Jajpur and apprehended the couple.
