22-year-old arrested, minor summoned as Mumbai police uncover elaborate social media scam targeting unsuspecting victims
The gang targeted people on the friends lists of police officers, demanding money
The Mumbai police's West Cyber Cell has busted a gang, including a 16-year-old minor, for allegedly scamming people by creating fake social media accounts impersonating IPS officers.
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These gang members posed as IPS and IAS officers from various Indian states, including the Mumbai police commissioner and a few joint commissioners, to request money from unsuspecting individuals.
Akramuddin Khan, 22, one of the accused, has been arrested, while the police have summoned the minor's parents and instructed them to cooperate with the investigation.
Khan, who was apprehended in Alwar, Rajasthan, and allegedly supplied devices to gang members who used these devices to create bogus social media accounts. They targeted people on their friends' lists, demanding money.
The gang's mastermind is still at large, and the police are actively searching for him.
Their modus operandi involved using photos from high-ranking officers' social media accounts (IAS, IPS, IRS, IFS) to craft fake profiles. They set these pictures as profile images, sent friend requests to people on the officers' friends lists, and then requested money for various reasons.
People often become victims of such scams because they mistake these fake accounts for real ones and end up sending money.
An FIR was filed a couple of months ago and the investigation into the matter led to the arrest of Khan.
Khan appeared before the court and was remanded to police custody, while the minor was released after notifying his parents.
The police advise the public not to trust or accept friend requests from unknown individuals on social media. If you receive such requests, do not send money, as this is a common tactic used by fraudsters nowadays.
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