K'taka Upa Lokayukta targeted in cyber scam attempt, FIR filed

Bengaluru, July 10 (IANS) In a shocking development, the Karnataka Police have filed an FIR against two cyber fraudsters for attempting to target the Karnataka Upa Lokayukta, police said on Thursday.

The FIR was filed by the Central CEN Crime Police Station in Bengaluru, following a complaint by Upa Lokayukta Justice K.N. Phaneendra.

The case has been registered under Sections 66(D) (cheating by personation using computer resources) and 84(C) (attempting to commit offences under the IT Act or facilitating their commission) of the Information Technology Act, 2008.

The FIR names Deepak Kumar Sharma and Rahul Kumar Sharma as the accused. Police have launched a search to trace and arrest them.

According to the FIR, on July 7, around 1 p.m., Justice Phaneendra received a call from an unknown number. The caller identified himself as Deepak Kumar Sharma and claimed to be a legal consultant.

He also introduced another person as Rahul Kumar Sharma, describing him as a junior consultant. Deepak further claimed that both worked for a Mumbai-based agency called the Data Protection Board of India, the FIR said.

He told Justice Phaneendra that his Aadhaar card was linked to a mobile number allegedly being used for illegal activities. Justice Phaneendra then asked the caller to send him a formal notice in this regard, the FIR states.

Suspecting the nature of the call, the judge promptly filed a police complaint, leading to the FIR.

In a separate incident, a government employee in Karnataka lost Rs 19 lakh to cybercriminals after being held in "digital arrest" for six hours. The incident took place in the Tumakuru district on December 24, 2024.

The victim, B.S. Nagabhushan, a government staffer residing in Upparahalli, Tumakuru, has lodged a complaint with the Cyber Crime Police.

According to the police, the accused called Nagabhushan and introduced himself as an officer from the Mumbai Crime Branch. He claimed that money had been transferred illegally from Nagabhushan's bank account.

The fraudster further alleged that there was another SIM card issued in the victim’s name, which was being used to harass people. Various members of the gang threatened that Nagabhushan’s property would be seized in connection with these cases and that he would be arrested.

--IANS

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