Bhubaneswar: The Commissionerate Police arrested a cyber criminal from Uttar Pradesh for allegedly duping a person of over Rs 98 lakh on the pretext of investment in shares and securities, said Jagmohan Meena, the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Bhubaneswar, on Friday.

The accused, identified as Mohd Shadab (33), is a resident of Rahimpur village in Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh. During a media briefing, DCP Meena said the victim in June this year received a WhatsApp link with the invitation to join the WhatsApp Group namely “X05-IIFL SECURITIES LTD”.

Later, the accused cyber fraudsters contacted the victim impersonating as officials of IIFL Securities Limited by using the company’s logo. They lured the complainant into investing by promising huge trading benefits through misleading and biased communication in the said WhatsApp group.

“The complainant was duped and deceived by the lucrative offers of the cyber fraudsters with a false promise of high returns. The complainant has deposited his hard-earned money to the tune of Rs 98.10 lakh in various bank accounts supplied by the fraudsters during the period from June 17 to July 1, 2025,” informed the Commissionerate Police sources.

The police further said the cyber fraudsters used two websites, https://cequityinsightyu.com and https://fintrendhub.com, for the commission of the offence. When the victim realised that he had fallen prey to the cyber criminals, he lodged a complaint with the Cyber Crime and Economic Offences Police Station in Bhubaneswar on July 4.

Police, during the investigation, found that Rs 30 lakh have been transferred by the victim to a firm ‘M/s CHAUDHARY CONTRACTOR AND SUPPLIER’ located at Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh. Subsequently, a team of Commissionerate Police, with the help of Kotwali City Police Station, arrested the accused, Shadab, on Wednesday, as Rs 30 lakh had been transferred to Bijnor-based firm’s bank account registered in the name of the arrested fraudster.

The police on Friday produced the accused, who was brought to Odisha on transit remand, before the court that sent him to judicial custody.