Indian authorities in Delhi have arrested three Nigerian nationals for allegedly defrauding an Indian woman of over ₹2.62 lakh.
The suspects, identified as Lezhu John, Gibril Mohammed, and Egboola Ekena, are accused of operating a cybercrime racket that has targeted numerous individuals across the country.
According to The Times of India, the arrests were made by the cybercrime police, and the suspects face charges under the Information Technology Act (2000) and the Indian Penal Code. If convicted, they could each face a minimum of three years imprisonment, as stipulated under Section 66D of the IT Act, which punishes cheating by impersonation through digital or electronic means.
The police revealed that the suspects had created fake social media profiles using photographs of men and women stored on their mobile phones. These profiles were then used to establish relationships with unsuspecting victims, ultimately leading to financial fraud.
In the most recent case, the victim, who connected with one of the suspects on Instagram, filed a complaint after realising she had been scammed. The suspect, posing as a chemical engineer named “Sohn Yunmin” from the United States, gained the victim’s trust by sharing personal stories and promising to move to India for work. Over time, he convinced her to send money for various fabricated reasons, including purchasing machinery and paying customs fees for a parcel supposedly containing US dollars.
The victim ultimately transferred ₹1.69 lakh before becoming suspicious and reporting the incident to the cybercrime police. Investigations uncovered that the suspects had used over 500 bank accounts to facilitate their fraud, with more than 900 related complaints filed across India.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (Cybercrime), Vadodara, M.M. Rajput, said: “Investigations revealed that the accused used over 500 bank accounts to commit the fraud. Over 900 complaints have been filed across the country in connection with these bank accounts.”
