Patna: A cyber fraud racket operating from Patna has been targeting gas consumers in Maharashtra, cheating them of crores of rupees over the past several years. The Patna Cyber Police have arrested four alleged members of the gang from a rented flat in the Ramkrishna Nagar area.
The arrested accused have been identified as Gultan Yadav and Arun Mandal from Madhupur in Deoghar district, Pankaj Kumar, and Shridhar from Pune. Police said the group had been carrying out fraud by posing as representatives of Maharashtra gas service providers and has allegedly cheated consumers for nearly five years.
According to police estimates, the gang has defrauded victims of around Rs 12 crore so far.
Patna Cyber Police Station in-charge and DSP Nitish Kumar Dhariya said several other members of the gang are still absconding. “Efforts are underway to trace them and their properties will be attached as part of the investigation,” he said.
Investigators revealed that the fraudsters would call gas consumers and later send them a malicious APK file link through WhatsApp. Once the victim opened the file, their mobile phone was compromised. The hackers then guided the victims through a fake process such as paying a processing fee or updating their connection details.
During this process, the criminals were able to obtain sensitive information, including UPI PIN details, and subsequently siphoned off money from the victims’ bank accounts.
Police said the gang used common pretexts such as pending gas bills, connection updates, or new gas connections to lure consumers into the trap.
Officials added that the accused had access to personal data of gas consumers, including mobile numbers and consumer numbers. Investigators suspect that certain individuals were selling such data to the cyber gang. Raids are underway to identify and arrest those involved in supplying the information.
Police said Shridhar, who is from Pune, allegedly communicated with the gas consumers, while other associates from Maharashtra were also reportedly linked to the operation.
The investigation further revealed that the gang had targeted victims not only in Maharashtra but also in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Gujarat.
According to police, the accused initially operated from Jharkhand’s Deoghar district. However, when the Deoghar police began searching for them, they shifted their base to Patna about five months ago and started operating from a rented flat.
During interrogation, the arrested suspects told police that about 60 percent of the fraud money was sent to the gang’s mastermind, while the remaining 40 percent was shared among the members.
Police said the accused claimed they had never met the mastermind in person and communicated only through phone calls or Telegram. The mastermind allegedly provided consumer data and operational instructions through Telegram groups.
The investigation is ongoing, and police are working to identify the remaining members of the network and trace the financial trail of the fraud.
