Team Goemkarponn
Panaji: In a major breakthrough, the Cyber Crime Police Station, Goa, has arrested a 23-year-old man from Surat, Gujarat, for allegedly defrauding a woman from Tiswadi, North Goa, of ₹97 lakh through a cyber fraud scheme involving impersonation and coercion. The accused, identified as Arhasad Aiyyub Shaikh, allegedly posed as an official from TRAI and the CBI using WhatsApp numbers and convinced the victim that her SIM card was linked to human trafficking activities. Claiming she was placed under “digital arrest,” the fraudsters coerced her into transferring ₹97 lakh via RTGS in two transactions—₹51 lakh to one YES Bank account and ₹46 lakh to another.
The case has been registered under Crime No. 18/2025 under Sections 318(4), 319(2) read with 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and Section 66-D of the IT Act. The arrest was made by a Cyber Cell team led by PSI Navin Naik, along with PC Sunil Renati and PC Yash Kole, under the guidance of PI Deepak Pednekar and senior officials ASP Akshat Ayush, IPS, and SP Rahul Gupta, IPS. During the investigation, it was found that the accused had received ₹51 lakh in his account, which is linked to multiple fraud cases across Maharashtra, Kerala, Telangana, Karnataka, and Goa, involving a total fraud amount of ₹1.20 crore. The accused is currently in police custody as further investigations continue.
