12 cybercriminals with global links held

Chennai: At least 12 people involved in high-stakes cybercrimes such as investment fraud, scholarship scams, and a digital arrest scam were arrested by the city police over the weekend. Police said the gangs had international links.Police said that following a tip off, a team led by superintendent of police Shahnaz tracked a gang of eight suspects running an online trading scam. The criminals, operating in coordination with their Sri Lankan counterparts, targeted victims by offering fake high-return investment opportunities. In one case, a doctor was tricked into investing over 87.9 lakh through a fraudulent online platform.Police tracked down and arrested all the eight — Sahabudeen (44), Shahid Afridi (27), Mustaq Ahmed (24), Mohammad Usman (67), Mohamed Munawar (41), his wife Jamilath Naseera (34), N Vajafullah (50), and his wife Fathima (45). They also seized mobile phones, SIM cards, and a laptop used for the scams.Further investigations revealed that the suspects were also involved in scholarship scams targeting students. This prompted the cybercrime wing, in collaboration with Delhi police, to arrest three more individuals — Ashu Kumar (29), Anuj Kumar Jha (21), and Shubham Kumar (22).In a related development, a resident from Vellore was duped in a ‘Digital Arrest' scam. The victim received a WhatsApp video call from someone claiming to be from the Mumbai police, who coerced him into transferring 2.7 crore to verify serial numbers on banknotes. The police discovered that the money was funnelled into an SBI account in Kerala, which was linked to a business owned by Manju. Following the information given by Manju, Imthiaz Shah was arrested.Investigations revealed the involvement of Imthiaz Shah and his associates Akhil D, Ashik AZ and Muhammad Ajmal in the scam. The bank account in question was tied to 99 complaints registered through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP).Shah was arrested, and efforts are on to arrest the remaining absconding suspects. Authorities have issued a public advisory, urging people to be cautious about online fraud and to report any suspicious activities immediately.