Pune cyberpolice arrest two from Belagavi over online fraud

Belagavi: Pune cyberpolice arrested two residents of Belagavi in connection with an online financial fraud involving Rs 1.9 crore siphoned off from a construction company in Hadapsar through a ‘man-in-the-middle' cyber-attack.The accused are Ajay Ramvilas Yadav, 22, and Salman Ghaus Moinuddin Ajmal, 32, both from Belagavi. The arrests were made on Feb 19 following an investigation into a case registered on Jan 19.According to senior inspector Swapnali Shinde of Pune cyberpolice, tracking of financial transactions revealed that the defrauded amount was transferred to Yadav's bank account. Yadav, who runs a hardware shop and holds a joint bank account, was taken into custody for questioning. During interrogation, it emerged that he allegedly shared his bank account details with Ajmal.Investigators said Ajmal, who works at a garage, allegedly obtained Yadav's account details by luring him with a commission on the transaction. Police are now searching for other members of the interstate cyber gang believed to be behind the fraud.According to the complaint filed by the Hadapsar-based construction firm, the company placed an order for construction materials with an equipment supplier and was required to transfer Rs 1.9 crore. However, fraudsters allegedly created a fake email address that resembled the supplier's and sent revised bank account details. Without verifying the email's authenticity, the company transferred the amount to the fraudulent account.The fraud came to light after the supplier did not receive the payment.