Cyber police busts digital arrest scam, three arrested for 1 crore fraud in Bidhannagar

In a significant development in an ongoing investigation into a sophisticated 'digital arrest fraud' case, officers from Survey Park PS, Bidhannagar Commissionerate's Detective Department (BFS/DD), arrested three more individuals today, May 6, 2025. This brings the total number of arrests in the case, which saw a victim cheated out of Rs 1 Crore, to six. The latest arrests have also unearthed a crucial cryptocurrency link used to launder the defrauded money.

The case, registered under Survey Park PS Case No. 184 dated November 9, 2024, concerns a complaint filed by Dr. Utpal Kumar Bit. Dr. Bit was allegedly coerced by fraudsters impersonating Mumbai Police officials. He was falsely accused of involvement in money laundering and threatened with immediate arrest, which led him to transfer approximately Rs 1 Crore through three different transactions. The accused are facing charges under sections 61(2), 319(2), 318(4), 338, 336(3), and 340(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Earlier in the investigation, three accused – Suraj Kumar Singh, the beneficiary account holder; Arman Akhtar Khan, who allegedly controlled Suraj's bank account; and Md. Jahinuddin, who reportedly collected the cash from Arman after the withdrawal, was apprehended. 1  Today's operation targeted the next links in this complex financial chain.

Based on meticulous tracking of mobile locations, officers pinpointed Subrata Mallick (32) in the Bangur area under Laketown PS jurisdiction. Following his arrest, Mallick's interrogation revealed that he had received the defrauded cash from Md. Jahinuddin. His statement led the police team to conduct a raid at an office located at 1/3 Bangur Avenue, Kolkata- 700055.

From this office, two more individuals, Pankaj Mallick (36) and Bishnu Agarwal (51), were arrested. A search of the premises yielded significant evidence, including five mobile phones, two laptop computers, one cash counting machine, four cheque books, and a substantial sum of cash amounting to Rs 28,37,400.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the arrested duo of Pankaj Mallick and Bishnu Agarwal, with the assistance of Subrata Mallick, were instrumental in channelising the extorted funds by converting them into cryptocurrency. This indicates a sophisticated layering technique employed by the fraudsters to obscure the money trail.

The three newly arrested accused – Subrata Mallick, Pankaj Mallick, and Bishnu Agarwal – will be produced before the Learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM), Alipore Court, tomorrow, May 7, 2025, where police will seek their remand for further interrogation to unravel the full extent of the racket.