Hyderabad: Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police arrested 55 cyber fraudsters in October as part of a large-scale crackdown aimed at curbing digital financial crimes across the state. Officials registered 196 FIRs and recovered ₹62.34 lakh from the accused, returning the funds to several victims.
According to a press release issued by the department, investigators identified suspicious transactions totaling ₹107 crore across 61 bank accounts linked to the arrested individuals. The accused face 136 criminal cases nationwide, including 45 in Telangana alone.
Among those arrested was a man from Andhra Pradesh who allegedly defrauded victims of ₹24.17 lakh through a fake trading app. Another gang operating in Hyderabad was caught for duping a 62-year-old man out of ₹1.07 crore. In a separate case, suspects stole ₹1.95 lakh using a mobile phone lost by a victim.
Police also uncovered 33 separate cyber frauds involving investment scams, digital arrest threats, and social media manipulation. Seized items included 31 mobile phones, 14 cheque books, nine debit cards, two laptops, three shell company stamps, and two SIM cards.
Cautioning the public, police warned against trusting messages sent from fake profiles impersonating government officials. They advised citizens to avoid joining unknown social media investment groups, opening APK files or phishing links, and responding to threatening video calls or messages claiming to be from agencies like CBI, RBI, ED, Customs, judiciary, Cyber Crime Police, Narcotics Bureau, FedEx, BSNL, or TRAI.
Authorities urged victims of suspicious calls or messages to contact the national cybercrime helpline at 1930.