The case came to light when a complainant searched for “Mahakumbh Helicopter Ride” online and contacted the number listed on a fraudulent website
The suspects in police custody on Wednesday
The Cuffe Parade Police in Mumbai busted a cyber fraud gang operating from Bihar and arrested five people in connection with the Maha Kumbh helicopter ride scam, the police officials said on Wednesday.
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According to the police, it arrested the cyber fraud gang from Bihar for allegedly creating a fake website offering helicopter rides for the Maha Kumbh festival in Uttar Pradesh and deceiving unsuspecting victims.
Following a detailed investigation and nationwide coordination, five accused, including the mastermind, were arrested, an official said.
The case came to light when a complainant searched for “Mahakumbh Helicopter Ride” online and contacted the number listed on a fraudulent website. The complainant was allegedly instructed to transfer Rs 60,652 via QR code. However, after realising that the payment had been sent to a private account instead of a government aviation service, they suspected fraud. The following day, the website disappeared, and the accused became unresponsive.
Another victim, Sankalp Jagdale from Colaba, had also reported a similar fraud, said a police official.
The police said that the investigators traced the withdrawn money to ATMs in Bihar through CCTV footage, identified Avinash Kumar alias Bittu as a suspect. Upon his arrest, Bittu admitted to creating the fake website and withdrawing money using ATM cards provided by Mukesh Kumar, the alleged mastermind. Mukesh and his associate Saurabh Kumar were later apprehended in Nagpur while traveling on the Danapur-Secunderabad train. The investigation further uncovered a fraudulent SIM card operation. Srishti Barnawal, an SIM card agent in Mumbai, had allegedly issued duplicate SIM cards for cyber fraud, while Sanjit Kumar was accused of facilitating their transfer to Bihar. Both were subsequently arrested.
The police officials are now investigating whether the gang has allegedly scammed more victims across India, the officials said.
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