Ex Kolkata CP Manoj Verma's son gets duped of 30,000 in cyber scam

The son of former Kolkata Police Commissioner and current Director of Security Manoj Verma has fallen victim to a cyber fraud, with Rs 30,000 allegedly siphoned off from his bank account. Police sources said Piyush Verma lodged a complaint at the Cyber Crime Police Station in Lalbazar on February 2 after discovering the unauthorised transaction.

According to police, the incident took place in Delhi while Piyush Verma was searching for a flat on rent. He had made a payment using his UPI ID during the process. Later, he found that Rs 30,000 had been debited from his account without his authorisation. He subsequently travelled to Kolkata to formally register the complaint.

Acting on the complaint, investigators arrested one Rakesh Pradhan from Odisha. During interrogation, the accused allegedly told police that two individuals from Delhi — identified as Sanjay and Akshay — had used his bank account. Police said Rakesh remains in custody and further investigation is underway to trace the other accused.

Officials said the case is being treated with seriousness amid a growing number of cyber crime complaints. To tackle such offences, Kolkata Police recently launched a 24-hour cyber crime helpline at Lalbazar. The toll-free number 1800-3450066 was inaugurated on Tuesday by Police Commissioner Supratim Sarkar to assist citizens facing cyber fraud and related offences.