Prison friendships helped him rebuild cybercrime network. Then a twist

The case began with a complaint from a Pune resident who said he was cheated of Rs 86 lakh after being lured into the share market with the promise of financial gains. Pimpri-Chinchwad cyber police registered a case and began tracing the money trail. Pimpri-Chinchwad Police Commissioner Vinoy Kumar Choubey, who closely monitored the probe, said, “We have observed cyber criminals using various ways to tap mule account holders. But in this case, connections made in prison have been used. This also means criminals with a history of other types of crimes like body offences have entered cybercrime.”

During the investigation, police found that Rs five lakh from the victim’s money had been transferred to an account of Lokhande, a 24-year-old resident of Pune. Technical investigation helped police trace Lokhande and take him into custody. It was during the investigation into Lokhande that police found his connection with Baklikar.

Lokhande had earlier been arrested in a kidnapping-extortion case registered at Hinjewadi police station and was in judicial custody. During his time in prison, he came into contact with Baklikar, who was also lodged there in connection with his 2024 cybercrime case. The two subsequently remained in contact even after their release, police said. At the time of arrest in 2024, Baklikar, a native of Latur, was pursuing a BAMS degree in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.

According to police, after coming out of prison, Lokhande and Baklikar contacted several former inmates. The two obtained their details and used them to arrange mule bank accounts that could be used for cybercrime. “We have so far found eight bank accounts that were opened and used as mule accounts for the racket. The accounts were held in the names of people who had come into contact with the accused during their time in prison. We are now examining the transactions through these accounts to establish the flow of money and the role played by each person,” said an officer who is part of the probe.

The investigation also revealed that the accused allegedly tried to create a more formal banking structure for the operation. “We found that accounts had been opened in the names of a construction company and a private limited company. We are examining whether these accounts were used to receive or transfer money connected with cybercrime,” the officer said.

The latest case brought Baklikar back into the police net two years after his previous arrest. In 2024, Pimpri-Chinchwad cyber police arrested Baklikar in connection with a Rs 61 lakh share-trading fraud. He was then described as a medical dropout and a key operator of a cybercrime network that handled hundreds of mule accounts and funnelled money to international cybercriminals in Nepal and China through cryptocurrency.

Police also found that Baklikar had developed links with international cybercriminals through his associates and had attended meetings of cybercriminals in Kathmandu. The network operated from Pune and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. Baklikar spent around one-and-a-half years in prison in that case. Investigators were now examining whether Baklikar’s current operation had any links with the international cybercrime network that he was accused of being associated with in 2024.