Berhampur (Odisha), Sep 21 (PTI) Odisha police have busted an inter-state online betting gang by arresting its three members from Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, officials said on Monday.
The cyber police officers of Chhatrapur in Ganjam district have arrested the accused persons on Sunday.
The gang, which operated at Palurgarh under Ganjam district’s Rambha police station limits, is suspected to have cheated around Rs 1 crore by giving false promises of huge returns on deposits, police said.
The accused persons have been identified as Satrughan Kumar Pandey (26) of Jharkhand’s Ramgarh district, Dharamdas Manikpuri (30) and Jagdish Sethi alias Suraj (30) of Chhattisgarh.
Acting on a tip-off about a gang operating and promoting online betting applications and engaging in other suspicious online fraud activities by luring innocent people with false promises of higher returns on their deposits, a police team conducted raids in a house at Palurgarh, said Jyoti Ranjan Behera, inspector in charge (IIC), cyber police station, Chhatrapur.
“During the raid, we found four persons in the house with some laptops and mobile phones. Seeing the police team, they tried to flee, and the police team managed to nab two accused persons, while the other two fled the spot,” Behera said.
During preliminary enquiry, they disclosed their involvement in operating and promoting the online betting application and inducing innocent people to deposit money by making false representations regarding huge returns, police said.
They also disclosed the names of other persons involved in illegal activities and arrested Satrughan.
Two laptops along with chargers and power cables, a Chromebook, 78 ATMs and other cards, 16 bank passbooks, 14 smart mobile phones, 86 SIMs, a motorbike and several other documents were seized from their possession.
Examination of the digital devices revealed the use and access of several online gaming/betting applications/platforms with associated user IDs and passwords, indicating substantial monetary transactions in the form of deposits and withdrawals, he said.
Further investigation and forensic analysis are in progress to establish the complete financial trail, modus operandi, and involvement of other persons in the illegal activity. PTI COR BBM BBM RG
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