CBI arrests Jamshedpur man in Rs 2 Cr digital arrest fraud probe

Mail News Service

Jamshedpur, July 16: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has intensified its probe into the sensational Rs 2-crore “digital arrest” cyber fraud involving a retired executive engineer from Jalandhar, arresting a suspect from Jamshedpur for allegedly facilitating the crime by providing a bank account to the fraud syndicate.
Acting on specific inputs, a CBI team raided Naidu Colony in Kitadih under Parsudih police station area and arrested P. Sharad Rao.

After informing the local police, the agency took the accused into custody for further investigation.
According to investigators, Rao allegedly allowed the cyber fraud network to use a bank account opened with his personal documents.

In return, he is accused of receiving a 2 per cent commission on the total amount routed through the account. The CBI suspects that a substantial portion of the defrauded money was channelled through this account.
Earlier this week, the agency had detained Rajdeep Singh, a resident of Tuiladungri in Golmuri, for nearly six hours before releasing him after serving a legal notice. Investigators found that the mobile number used to open one of the bank accounts linked to the fraud was registered in Singh’s name. The CBI is now verifying whether he had any direct involvement or whether his identity documents were misused to obtain the SIM card.
The case dates back to 2025, when retired Punjab State Power Department Executive Engineer Sukhminder Singh was allegedly duped of Rs 2 crore by cyber fraudsters posing as government officials.

Using fake arrest warrants and video calls, the accused threatened him with a so-called “digital arrest” and convinced him to transfer his entire retirement corpus, assuring him the money would be refunded after the completion of the purported investigation.

The victim transferred the amount in nine separate transactions, following which the money was allegedly dispersed through nearly 60 bank accounts and trust accounts across the country to conceal the money trail.
The case was initially registered at the Cyber Crime Police Station in Jalandhar. However, after the investigation made little headway, the victim approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Acting on the court’s directions, the investigation was handed over to the CBI, which has already arrested three other accused from Rajasthan in connection with the case.