Varanasi: The cybercrime cell of commissionerate Varanasi and the Sarnath police on Friday busted an interstate gang allegedly involved in duping people of crores of rupees through banned online ludo betting.Police arrested three accused identified as Sagar Seth, Mangal Kumar and Sudeep Kashyap, all residents of Shiv Vihar Colony in Aktha, Sarnath. Four mobile phones were recovered from their possession. Besides, details of seven bank accounts were also taken from the accused.ACP, cyber, Apoorva Pandey said the gang targeted people across nine states, including UP, Haryana, Punjab, Bihar, Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Gujarat. Police found 19 complaints linked to the accused from these states. According to police, the accused allegedly cheated people of ₹8,14,63,918.94. An amount of ₹1,46,828.98 remaining in seven bank accounts is being frozen.Police said the gang operated through a Telegram group named “New Ludo Parivar,” where members were added and lured with promises of doubling their money in a short time. Victims were then persuaded to invest in banned online ludo games.The money collected from players was allegedly received directly into the accused persons’ bank accounts through UPI. The accused deducted an illegal commission from the amount and paid the remaining sum to players, creating the impression that they were earning profits.
