Cyber Fraud Unveiled: Minister's Firm Falls Prey to Phony WhatsApp Message

Police arrested five gang members who swindled an accountant out of Rs 2.08 crore, linked to UP Minister Nand Gopal Gupta's company. Cyber cops retrieved multiple digital devices and discovered links to international fraudsters using modern anonymity tools. Victim Ritesh Srivastava was deceived by a fake message mimicking the minister's son.

In a startling cyber fraud case, five individuals were arrested for deceiving an accountant linked to Uttar Pradesh Minister Nand Gopal Gupta's company. The group skillfully extracted Rs 2.08 crore using a phony WhatsApp message that impersonated the Minister's son, Abhishek Gupta.

The arrested members include Divyanshu from Patna, Pulkit Dwivedi from Mau, and Sanjeev Kumar, Surjeet Singh, and Vijay Kumar from Bareilly. The arrests were coordinated by Rajiv Kumar Tiwari, SHO of Cyber Police Station, who explained the gang's intricate setup with cybercriminals based abroad via Telegram.

The culprits manipulated victim Ritesh Srivastava into transferring large sums, further verifying the message's authenticity with a meeting pretext. The fraud came to light after communication with the director, confirming the deceit. The swift arrest followed a complaint filed by Srivastava, subsequently freezing the implicated bank accounts.

(With inputs from agencies.)