Crime Branch in Odisha has netted a crucial arrest in Bhubaneswar, hauling in 39-year-old Guntur resident Vedagiri Srinivasa Rao over a Rs 6 crore cyber investment hoax. The operation exposes a cunning scheme that ensnared a Berhampur trader through digital manipulation.
Contact initiated on Facebook May 7, 2024, by alias Sanjana Srinivasan, a fake Hong Kong IBM coder. She shifted to WhatsApp, selling dreams of ZAIR crypto trades backed by an IBM data center myth. The victim bit, opening an account and diving into simulated markets.
Trouble brewed with a phantom USD loan; Sanjana urged more cash to offset. Profits flickered enticingly, masking the scam. Withdrawal bids met ‘20% clearance fee’ walls—Rs 89 lakh down, zero release, as ‘risk teams’ stonewalled.
Total bleed: Rs 6.16 crore wired May 23-June 24. FIR on July 9 unleashed transaction forensics, pinning Rao. He’s the seventh collar, joining five Surat and one Ludhiana catches.
Authorities decry the scam’s sophistication—social media hooks, bogus credentials, app-trapped ledgers. Public advisories flood: Scrutinize platforms, avoid stranger-funded trades, report anomalies instantly. Odisha’s cyber wing ramps up intel-sharing with national agencies, vowing to shred such syndicates and safeguard digital investors amid surging online frauds.