Bhubaneswar: Tamando Police have busted an online fraud racket allegedly using fake escort service profiles created with stolen photographs of women and arrested four persons in connection with the case, police said on Sunday.
The accused have been identified as Umakanta Dalei, Chitta Ranjan Mohanty, Tofan Pradhan, and Minji Bhoi. Police said the arrests were made following a complaint alleging the misuse of photographs of women on fake online escort service platforms.
According to ACP Sub-Division III Prasant Kumar Sahoo, the accused allegedly downloaded photographs of several young women from social media and used them without consent to create fake profiles advertising escort services. These profiles were then used to lure customers under false pretenses.
The ACP said the accused operated a coordinated racket in which they misrepresented the identities of women and offered services online, collecting advance payments from customers through digital modes. After receiving the money, they allegedly cut off communication and disappeared.
The case came to light after a woman lodged a complaint stating that her photograph had been misused on a fake escort service page. Acting on the complaint, police verified the information and laid a trap by contacting the number listed in the advertisement.
A team, along with the complainant, reached the location in plain clothes. Police said the accused were apprehended during the operation while accepting money in a staged transaction.
“We had another team in position as well. We seized their vehicles and mobile phones during the operation,” ACP Sahoo said.
Police said preliminary investigations suggest that hundreds of people may have been cheated by the racket. The accused allegedly used multiple SIM cards and digital platforms to carry out the fraud.
During the operation, police seized nine mobile phones, 15 SIM cards, digital devices, bank account details, and records of UPI transactions from their possession.
Further investigation is underway to identify other possible links in the network.
