Pune: Cyber Cell Saves Bank Accounts With Rs 216 Crores Balance, 8 Members Of Gang Arrested Before Selling Data
Mubarak Ansari
Pune, 16th March 2021: The cyber crime cell of Pune city police has busted a high-profile gang before they could sell bank account details of people from across India. Police said that accounts (with five banks) have a total balance of Rs 216.29 crores.
Based on a complaint from PSI Amit Gore, an FIR has been registered against 12 persons at the Pune cyber police station in Shivajinagar. Police said that the accused include four IT engineers as well as those working with companies who store data of bank accounts. The owner of a news channel from Aurangabad is under scanner in the case besides some employees of two leading banks.
According to police, the gang has been nabbed in Pune for stealing and selling details of active as well as dormant accounts. This time accused were going to sell data to a person. Acting on a tip-off received by PSI Gore, a team led by Police Inspector Kumar Ghadge laid a trap at Nayantara Heights near City International School in Mahrishinagar on Monday.
A police officer said, “We were waiting when a Creta car reached there and a person got out of the car about whom we had received information. Soon, five men and a woman also came there. We immediately detained them and our cyber experts verified the data in their possession. They had bank account details with a whopping Rs 216.29 crore balance. One of the accused Rohan Mankani said that there is another person who will pay for the data.”
Accordingly, the team reached the flat of Sudhir Shantilal Bhatewara alias Jain (54) in the Sun City area and detained three persons. “As per Mankani’s information, we reached the flat and he identified Jain. We seized Rs 25 lakh cash from there. Two persons who were coming from Gujarat to take the money were nabbed in Mumbai”, the officer added.
Till now, police have seized Rs 25 lakh cash, 11 mobile phones, 1 Creta, a Duster car and a moped, totally worth Rs 43.54 lakh.
The arrested persons include Ravindra Mahadev Mashalkar (34) of Ambajogai Road in Latur, Mukesh Harishchandra More (37) of Yerwada, Rajshekhar Yadaiha Mamida (34) of Hyderabad, Rohan Ravindra Mankani (37) of Sahakarnagar, Vishal Dhananjay Bendre (45) of Washim, Atmaram Harishchandra Kadam (34) of Mumbai, Varun Shrikadam Varma (37) of Meerut in Uttar Pradesh and Vikaschand Mahendrakumar Yadav (25) of Jaunpur district in Uttar Pradesh.
Today they were produced before a court that remanded them to police custody till March 20. Two accused, one from Hyderabad and another from Gujarat, are wanted in the case.
Besides the arrested persons, police have issued notices to Sudhir Shantalal Bhatewara alias Jain (54) of Sinhagad Road, Rajesh Munnalal Sharma (42), Paramjit Singh Sandhu (42), both residents of Aurangabad and Anagha Anil Modak (40) of Wadgaon.
All of them have been charged for offences under 419 (punishment for cheating by impersonation), 420 (cheating), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and relevant sections of the Information Technology Act.
The action was taken under the guidance of Commissioner of Police Amitabh Gupta, Jt CP Ravindra Shisve, Add CP (Crime) Ashok Morale, DCP (Cyber and EOW) Bhagyashree Navatake, ACP Dr Shivaji Pawar.
The team included Cyber Police Station’s Senior Police Inspector Rajkumar Waghchoure, Police Inspector Kumar Ghadge, Police Inspector Mahadev Kumbhar, PSI Sagar Padwal, Amit Gore, Anil Dafal and police personnel Sandesh Karne, Nitesh Shelar, Prasad Potdar, Nitin Chandane, Anil Pundalik, Navnath Jadhav, Shubhangi Malusare and Jyoti Diwane.
