Kanpur | A 60-year-old retired school teacher in Kanpur was allegedly duped of Rs 1.57 crore in a sophisticated multi-layered cyber scam, police said on Wednesday.

The fraudsters impersonated prominent global personalities such as Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, American singer Josh Turner and an associate of Elon Musk, Vishwakarma said.

The matter came to light when the victim, Allyson Weems, 60, a resident of Chakeri, registered an FIR on Monday, Cyber Crime Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Anjali Vishwakarma told PTI.

She said, Weems was first contacted on Facebook in January last year by a person posing as Zuckerberg, and after gaining her trust over time, the accused lured her into investing in a proposed "international school project" in Kanpur, promising high returns and a senior position in the venture.

Subsequently, other fraudsters joined the conversation via WhatsApp and Facebook, impersonating American singer Josh Turner and an associate of Elon Musk to bolster the scheme's credibility, he said.

Between January 25, 2025, and February 20, 2026, the victim transferred a sum of Rs 1.57 crore into multiple bank accounts under various pretexts, including investment, processing fees, taxes and job-related expenses, police said.

When she sought a refund, the accused allegedly claimed her investment had grown to Rs 2.23 crore and continued to extract money on the pretext of verification charges, stamp duty and other formalities.

In another layer of the fraud, a person posing as a recovery agent contacted her, claiming the funds had been dispatched via courier and demanded additional payments towards shipping, customs clearance and compliance charges.

She was later connected to a purported legal advisor who falsely claimed that her money had been invested in a trading portfolio and showed inflated returns to extract further payments, Vishwakarma said.

Upon realising the fraud, the victim approached the cybercrime police station and lodged an FIR.

Officials said Rs 19 lakh has been frozen after a complaint was filed on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal.

Kanpur Commissioner of Police Raghubir Lal described the case as a "well-coordinated and multi-layered cyber fraud" involving multiple accused operating in tandem.

Efforts are underway to trace the network and recover the remaining amount, he added, urging citizens to remain cautious while interacting with unknown individuals online, especially those offering high returns or impersonating well-known personalities.

Six cybercriminals arrested in Jharkhand’s Jamtara, probe underway

Jamtara | Six cybercriminals were arrested in Jharkhand’s Jamtara district on Wednesday, a senior police official said.

The accused were apprehended from a deserted place near Padamdih village within Karmatar police station limits following a tip-off, he said.

"Based on a tip-off, we arrested six cybercriminals. For the past four to five years, they had been defrauding people by running a fake company. They provided customer care numbers in the name of the company, collected forms from people, and obtained their mobile numbers," Jamtara SP Rajkumar Mehta said.

Police recovered one laptop, 18 SIM cards, 13 mobile phones, and four bikes from their possession, the SP said.

This gang had trapped people in various parts of the country. A detailed investigation into the case has been initiated, police said.

Kolkata Police unearths cyber fraud network

Kolkata | The Kolkata Police has dismantled an organised cyber fraud network operating illegal ‘SIM box devices’ to impersonate law enforcement officials, an officer said on Wednesday.

A ‘SIM box’ is a telecom device used to illegally route international calls, making those appear as domestic calls. Miscreants operating abroad often use these systems to impersonate Indian law enforcement agencies in ‘Digital Arrest’ cases, police said.

The accused in this case allegedly extorted Rs 3.01 crore from a retired engineer, a resident of Parnasree area in Kolkata, the officer said, adding they impersonated CBI officials and threatened arrest, coercing him into transferring the sum.

Two accused in the case have been arrested in the state, one in February and another on Wednesday, he said.

“Through technical analysis, we traced the fraudulent calls to an organised SIM box setup, which the gang used to disguise international calls as domestic ones,” the officer said.

“This not only facilitated impersonation scams, but also caused revenue loss to telecom operators,” he said.

During raids to nab the accused, the police recovered several ‘SIM box devices’, SIM cards, mobile phones, routers and other accessories.

“Efforts are ongoing to trace crypto transactions, courier links, and the SIM supply chain to identify and apprehend other associates involved. We are also analysing connections to similar cases across India,” the officer said.