UT cyber cops nabbed 33, froze 1cr in Jan

Chandigarh: The cybercrime investigation wing of Chandigarh Police arrested 33 cyber frauds in the first month of 2026, conducting 13 raids across multiple states and cities. The police registered 21 cases of cyber cheating during this period and prevented a loss of Rs 1.13 crore by freezing the defrauded amount in various bank accounts.During the operations, police recovered 41 mobile phones, 82 SIM cards, 85 ATM cards, eight dongles, 27 landline phones, wireless transmitters, several bank passbooks, cheque books and other documents.
The cyber police also issued 31 notices in different FIRs through the Cyber Investigation Assistance Request (CIAR) mechanism on the I4C Samanvya Portal. Several requests received from other states were also processed, officials said.SHO Eram Rizvi said the cyber cell remains committed to protecting citizens from online threats by using advanced technology, data-driven intelligence, interstate coordination and regular public awareness initiatives and awareness drives.Data shows city residents lost Rs 44.07 crore to online fraudsters in 2025, of which the cyber police froze Rs 10.75 crore. Last year, police arrested 146 accused, and recovered 201 mobile phones, six laptops and six SIM boxes. They also blocked 430 mobile numbers suspected to have been used in cyber fraud.In one of the major actions this year, cyber police arrested 11 people for allegedly duping a city resident, Krishan Chand, of Rs 38 lakh in a digital arrest scam. Chand said he received a call on Jan 7 from a man posing as a Mumbai Police officer, who claimed his Aadhaar card was linked to a money-laundering case.The fraudsters then contacted him over WhatsApp video calls while wearing police uniforms and sent fake arrest warrants. They also called his wife and threatened both with arrest. Another caller, pretending to be the CBI director, pressured the couple into transferring Rs 38 lakh through RTGS.