The Odisha Commissionerate Police have apprehended Arabinda Paul, a 46-year-old man from Mongra in Hooghly district, West Bengal, in connection with an investment fraud case. Paul, an MBA graduate, is alleged to be the main beneficiary of the fraud amount and is linked to various cyber fraud cases across the country. The arrest was made following a complaint by Bhagirathi Mohanta, a 68-year-old resident of Tamando in Bhubaneswar, who was duped of over Rs 50 lakh through online trading.
Paul was taken into custody based on a case filed at the Cyber Crime and Economic Offence Police Station after Mohanta reported being contacted by fraudsters via WhatsApp groups. The victim was enticed into investing in online trading with promises of high returns by individuals from a WhatsApp group named SMC SIT III WII Group. Acting on their advice, Mohanta opened a trading account with SMC Capital Customer Care Unit and deposited Rs 50.16 lakh into various bank accounts as instructed.
Investigations revealed that the bank accounts provided by the fraudsters were not associated with legitimate companies as claimed. Instead, these accounts were used by cyber fraudsters to carry out transactions amounting to lakhs of rupees daily. Notably, around Rs 1 lakh was deposited by the victim into Paul’s bank account.
