Cyber fraud racket targeting women busted in Punjab; 3 held in Mohali

Mohali: Punjab Police's state cyber crime division has busted an inter-state cyber fraud racket involved in impersonating women on social media platforms to extort money from victims. This was stated by Punjab director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav on Tuesday.The arrested accused have been identified as brothers Abhishek Bhargav, Aakash alias Aman and Lucky, natives of Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan, who were residing in Sector 70, Mohali. Police teams recovered Rs 3.49 lakh in cash, $500, 29 mobile phones, a laptop, a tablet, a dongle and 38 empty mobile phone boxes from their possession. DGP Gaurav Yadav said the accused used fake profiles on social media platforms such as Instagram and WhatsApp to contact unsuspecting victims while posing as women. "The accused used voice-changing software to impersonate women and gain the trust of their targets, particularly women. They then extorted money by threatening to circulate AI-generated objectionable videos of the victims on social media," he said. Sharing details of the operation, special DGP (cyber crime) V Neeraja said the case came to light after the father of a victim lodged a complaint. The victim was allegedly cheated of Rs 3.10 lakh between 2023 and 2025 while she was residing in Canada. She said the investigation conducted by a team led by SHO state cyber crime police station Amandeep Singh, under the supervision of SP Jaspinder Singh, revealed that the alleged kingpin, Aakash Bhargav, devised the modus operandi nearly two years ago. According to the investigators, the accused used to create fake social media accounts to target victims and also posed as religious gurus or astrologers to gain their trust. Once contact was established, they allegedly threatened victims with fabricated or AI-generated objectionable videos to extort money. During interrogation, the accused disclosed that the gang had collected nearly Rs 40 lakh through such fraudulent activities over the past two years, the special DGP said. Police officials said further investigations were under way to identify other possible accomplices and victims, who may have been targeted by the racket. Advisory for social media users Special DGP V Neeraja has urged social media users, especially women, to remain cautious of individuals posing as soothsayers, astrologers or advisers offering services online. She also advised people not to share personal details, photographs or videos on social media platforms, as such information could be misused. She added said that if anyone was threatened with the misuse of personal information or images, they should not panic and immediately contact the cyber helpline number 1930 or register a complaint on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (cybercrime.gov.in). The special DGP also cautioned people against transferring money to unknown persons contacted through social media. In cases where money was already transferred, the victims should immediately report the transaction on the helpline so that authorities can attempt to block or freeze the suspected bank account.