Kolkata Police Bust Cyberfraud Racket, Arrest 11 From Hotel

Kolkata Police have busted an alleged cyberfraud racket operating from a hotel in the city's New Market area and arrested 11 people, most of them from Bihar and Jharkhand, a senior police officer said on Monday.

Acting on a tip-off about a group of youths allegedly running a fake call centre from the hotel, a team from the Park Street police station conducted a raid and apprehended the accused. Police said most of those arrested are residents of Jamui district in Bihar and Deoghar district in Jharkhand.

According to investigators, the accused were allegedly operating an organised cybercrime syndicate by posing as government officials and using a fraudulent scheme designed to resemble the PM-KISAN programme. The suspects allegedly contacted randomly selected mobile phone users and sent them malicious links through Telegram, promising lucrative benefits.

Police suspect the links were created to obtain unauthorised access to victims' mobile phones and collect sensitive personal information, including Aadhaar details, which could subsequently be misused.

A senior police officer described the operation as organised and said investigators were examining digital evidence seized during the raid to determine the full extent of the alleged racket.

During the operation, police seized 20 mobile phones from the accused. Preliminary examination of the devices reportedly revealed several mobile applications and digital tools allegedly used to identify potential victims, communicate with them and facilitate the fraudulent activities.

Investigators are now analysing the seized devices and digital records to trace the flow of alleged fraudulent transactions and determine the specific role played by each arrested individual. Police are also probing whether the accused were linked to a wider cybercrime network operating across multiple states. Further arrests could follow depending on the findings of the ongoing investigation.

The case highlights growing concerns over cybercriminals impersonating government officials and exploiting popular welfare schemes to deceive unsuspecting citizens and obtain sensitive financial or identity-related information.