Telangana cyber security bureau arrests 48 criminals involved in over 2,000 cases

Hyderabad: The Telangana Cyber Security Bureau (TGCSB) on Wednesday announced the arrest of 48 cyber criminals involved in 2,194 cases across the country, including 508 cases in the state, causing a loss of Rs 8.16 crore to victims.

The arrests followed a major operation conducted by the TGCSB in coordination with local police across various parts of Telangana, said TGCSB Director Shikha Goel.

The arrested individuals were involved in various types of cybercrimes, including business investment (trading) frauds, job frauds, digital arrests, and courier scams, a release from TGCSB stated.

Among the 48 arrested, 38 were 'mule' account holders, while 10 were agents who arranged and supplied mule accounts to the criminals.

The agents lured account holders with promises of commission-based incentives for allowing their accounts to be used in cybercrimes. Police said the account holders knowingly and willingly permitted the criminals to use their accounts for illegal activities.

The arrested individuals included unemployed people, as well as professionals such as cab drivers, small business owners, and IT employees, police said.

During the operation, police seized 53 mobile phones, four laptops, five CPUs, 18 bank passbooks, and 16 cheque books. Further investigations are underway.

Inputs from PTI