A total of 17 people were produced in court on Wednesday, October 16, on charges of multiple frauds by promising marriage and dating through call centres and apps. All of them have been remanded in police custody. Kolkata Police's cyber crime inspector Piyali Barua filed a suo motu complaint after learning about multiple frauds. Based on the complaint, the police are investigating.
The accused had been running the call centre for a long time. Apart from India, they are also alleged to have made false promises to Bangladeshi nationals and extorted crores. The accused created fake photos, screenshots, fake payment receipts and even fake websites. They were used to extort money from people under the guise of marriage and dating.
Most of the 17 arrested are women. Ages 19 to 35. They are Shampa Mukherjee, Moumita Paira, Uma Ram, Bulti Das, Mamta Halder, Khushi Sarkar, Sumi Basu, Tania Mondal, Pooja Saha, Aditi Chakraborty, Sumi Das, Kajal Singh, Vinita Midya, Pooja Mallick, Preeti Ram, Alish Valmiki and Aritra Saha.
The accused are residents of New Alipur, Purba Putiari, Garia, Tangra, Tollygunge, Salt Lake, Sonarpur and other places. Investigators say more people are involved in the racket. A search is underway to find them.
