Nagpur: In a major breakthrough in a cybercrime case, the Nagpur Cyber Police have arrested an accused involved in a money laundering scam from Odisha. The accused had allegedly defrauded a Nagpur resident of ₹23.71 lakh through threats and fake documents. Acting swiftly, the police managed to recover ₹19.90 lakh, which has been returned to the complainant as per court orders.
According to the complaint lodged on July 15, 2025, the victim received fake documents between July 2 (11 AM) and July 3 (9 PM) via messaging apps. These documents were impersonating officials from the Department of Telecommunications (Delhi), Mumbai Police, and even the Supreme Court. The victim was falsely informed that they were involved in a money laundering case and would be digitally arrested. Under pressure, they transferred ₹23.71 lakh to a Bank of Maharashtra account.
Based on the complaint, the Cyber Police registered FIR No. 57/2025 under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Gold Rate
05 Aug 2025
During investigation, the police traced the fraudulent transaction to Bank of Maharashtra’s Puri (Odisha) branch, account number 60538001303. The account was found to be registered in the name of Ranjan Kumar Vishnucharan Patnaik (age 60), a resident of Nayagarh, Odisha. When officers attempted to locate him at the listed address, he was not found, and the mobile number linked to the account was switched off.
Using technical surveillance and analysis, the accused was traced to Bhubaneswar, where he was arrested on August 5, 2025. He was presented before the court, which granted police custody till August 11, 2025.
Following court directives, ₹19,90,392.98 from the frozen bank account is now being returned to the victim — a rare and commendable success in cyber fraud recovery cases.
This successful operation was conducted under the guidance of Commissioner of Police Ravindra Singhal, Joint Commissioner Navin Chand Reddy, Additional Commissioner (Crime Branch), and DCP (Cyber) Lohit Matani.
The investigation team comprised Senior Police Inspector Baliram Sutar, API Shankar Pandhare, Police Naik Vinod Tondphode, and Police Constable Rinkesh Thakur.
This prompt and precise action by the Nagpur Cyber Police has brought much-needed relief to the fraud victim and stands as a strong warning to cyber criminals operating across states.
