Fake CBI, sirens, ‘blackmail’: Kanpur gang’s Rs 2 cr scam targeted women with fake porn case threats

Police say a Kanpur gang operated from remote rural pockets, impersonating crime branch and CBI officials to scare victims into paying money over fabricated child pornography allegations. 8 held.

In a joint operation of Kanpur's Sachendi Police and Cyber Crime Cell, West Zone, an extortion racket has been busted | X@kanpurnagarpol

Lucknow: A sensational cyber fraud racket busted in Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur has left even the police stunned. A gang allegedly extorted Rs 2 crore from people by posing as crime branch officials and falsely accusing them of watching child porn. The gang was arrested by the Kanpur Police Thursday evening.

According to the UP Police, the gang allegedly operated its cyber extortion racket from isolated fields, abandoned buildings, and areas near tube wells. A joint team from the Sachendi Police Station in Kanpur and the cyber crime cell arrested eight alleged members of the gang involved in the operation.

Police said the accused impersonated officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the police crime branch to extort money. Investigators suspect the gang had duped at least 23 people, most of them women.

According to police officials, the gang primarily targeted individuals by falsely accusing them of watching child porn online. The accused allegedly posed as police officers, threatening victims with arrest, legal action, and public humiliation before demanding hefty payments to settle the fabricated cases.

Deputy Commissioner of Police in Kanpur West Zone Kasim Abidi said the accused were traced through complaints registered on the national cyber crime reporting portal (NCRP). During calls, one gang member would play police siren sounds on a mobile phone in the background to make the calls appear genuine. If victims were not intimidated by threats of legal action, the accused allegedly sent videos of alleged police torture to further scare them.

Police identified the gang’s alleged kingpins as Ramji alias Aryan and Gorelal alias Suraj, who reportedly made threatening calls to victims. Other accused include Sarvesh, Abhishek, and Rinku, who assisted in the operations, while Avdhesh, Abhishek Savita, and Ram Prakash allegedly handled withdrawal of the extorted money from bank accounts.

Investigators said youths from several villages in and around Sachendi (located in Kanpur rural), including Chhattapurwa, Gajjapurwa, Rewari, Bhimsen, Bhailamau, and parts of Kanpur Dehat, were involved in the racket.

Police further alleged that the accused forced victims to reset their phones after making payments, warning them not to share the incident with anyone to avoid public disgrace. This helped the gang erase digital evidence and evade law enforcement agencies.

Connections in multiple states

The investigation has also revealed links to multiple states, including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand. Based on complaints registered on cyber crime portals, police tracked down the gang, which allegedly exploited technical loopholes to blackmail victims.

Cyber cell officials in Kanpur revealed that most members of the gang were educated up to Class 10 or 12, while the alleged mastermind was reportedly an eighth grade dropout. Officials added that the gang particularly targeted women, threatening to expose them to their families and neighbours for allegedly watching pornographic content. Victims were also threatened with police raids if they refused to pay.

Police suspect the gang had been active for nearly five years and may have extorted close to Rs 2 crore. Authorities are now investigating the gang’s wider network, associates, and bank accounts linked to the fraud.

Links to earlier cyber fraud case

This is not the first such incident reported in Kanpur. Just last month, another major case linked to cyber fraud surfaced, prompting the police to intensify their crackdown. On 9 April, police conducted raids in the Ghatampur and Reuna areas and found 289 pre-activated SIM cards. The investigation subsequently uncovered a large network allegedly involved in online fraud worth crores of rupees. Police officials are now looking at links between the two cases.

Police said 17 accused were absconding in the case registered in April and search operations were still underway. During questioning, some of the arrested cyber criminals reportedly told investigators that several rural pockets in Kanpur Nagar and Kanpur Dehat were found to have organised cyber fraud rackets.

Investigators are now carrying out raids to trace the 17 absconding accused as well as the network allegedly used to channel and hide the defrauded money.

According to officials, fraudsters allegedly made 32 calls to a victim between 26 and 28 January, threatening to implicate the person in a drugs-related case unless money was paid. Police said the 289 pre-activated SIMs were allegedly used to make fraudulent calls. Investigators are now trying to determine how the SIM cards reached the accused and which telecom service providers were involved. Officials believe the probe could soon expose another major cyber fraud network.

(Edited by Viny Mishra)