Daijiworld Media Network – Panaji

Panaji, Feb 1: The cybercrime cell of Goa police on Saturday arrested two Assam residents in connection with a major inter-state cyber fraud case involving Rs 1.4 crore. The accused have been identified as Ashadul Islam (24) and Yasmina Ahmed (32), both residents of Nagaon district in Assam.

Goa police registered the case based on a complaint filed by a resident of Bicholim, who was allegedly duped through a fake “digital arrest” scam. Cybercrime Superintendent of Police Rahul Gupta said the accused impersonated officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Supreme Court using multiple WhatsApp numbers, coercing the victim into transferring Rs 1.4 crore into several bank accounts.

Following a detailed technical investigation into the communication between the fraudsters and the complainant, a special team of the crime branch traced the accused to Assam and arrested them from Nagaon, Gupta said.

During questioning, it was found that the duo had earlier been arrested by Assam police for similar cyber fraud cases. “The same mobile phones were used in the Goa case as well. The seizure made by Assam police will be included in the Goa police investigation,” Gupta added.

The SP further revealed that the same mobile numbers were also linked to another ‘digital arrest’ complaint registered in Goa, involving a fraud amount of Rs 63.5 lakh.

Investigations have shown that the accused were operating multiple mobile numbers using common IMEI devices, which were linked to several cyber fraud complaints across the country. Police said Islam and Ahmed are key accused in a larger network of financial frauds and their arrest is expected to help solve multiple cases nationwide.