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Journalism of Courage
Maharashtra cyber police Friday said that they managed to recover Rs 32 crore in a cyber fraud case in which a private bank in Mumbai lost Rs 40 crore — one of the biggest cases of cyber fraud in the state in terms of the amount lost.
The manager of the bank’s Hyderabad branch is the key suspect who allegedly made the unauthorised transactions, police said.
The action was possible due to quick reporting of the crime on National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCCRP) and follow up action by Maharashtra Cyber which got in touch with the banks through which the money was transferred, and asked them to freeze the accounts.
Maharashtra Cyber found two illegal transactions of Rs 15 crore and Rs 25 crore were made by the Hyderabad branch manager without authorisation from the banks’ head office in Mumbai.
The money was then transferred to nearly 20 accounts by the Hyderabad branch manager. While the FIR was registered in Hyderabad, the complaint was made from Mumbai.
An officer from cyber police said, “On July 19, our team observed a complaint registered involving significant fraudulent transactions amounting to Rs 40 crore. Recognizing the urgency of the situation, our team immediately initiated follow-up procedures.” He added, “Our team promptly began coordinating with all relevant financial intermediaries involved in the transaction. By 6 pm, we successfully placed a hold on approximately Rs 31 crore of the fraudulent amount. As of the latest update, our team’s efforts have resulted in recovering Rs 32.89 crore.”
An officer said that while the Hyderabad police registered an offence and are tracking the accused, Maharashtra Cyber was involved in retrieving the money that was lost.
Maharashtra Cyber oversees cyber crime complaints registered on NCCRP portal for the state of Maharashtra in addition to the national cyber-crime helpline 1930.
An officer said that the helpline now manages 4,000-5,000 per day, maintaining a 100 per cent answer rate. “With 20 fully operational lines, the service has expanded its workforce to over 110 dedicated professionals working in shifts to ensure 24*7 availability. From 2021 to July 26, 2024, a total of 2,81,019 complaints have been registered, totalling to Rs 3,324.90 crore in fraudulent transactions, with Rs. 358.77 crore put on hold,” the officer added.
