Two Arrested in ₹1.08 Crore Online Betting Scam in Odisha
Bhubaneswar: The cyber wing of Odisha’s Crime Branch has arrested two individuals in connection with an elaborate online betting scam that defrauded a resident of Kalinganagar in Jajpur district of ₹1.08 crore.
The accused have been identified as Sk Wasiul Islam alias Rohan (29), a resident of Raipur under Contai Police Station in Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal, and Jyoti Prakash Pallai (36), a resident of Press Colony, Unit-III, Bhubaneswar. Islam is reportedly involved in the sports goods and cashew business, while Pallai, a diploma holder in engineering, is engaged in construction work.
The case was registered following a complaint filed on May 1, wherein the victim alleged that he was lured into a fake online cricket betting scheme through a website found on Google. Between August 2022 and January 2025, the victim was systematically defrauded, ultimately transferring ₹1.08 crore via UPI transactions—not just from his own account, but also using accounts belonging to his wife, friends, and employees.
Initially promised high returns on small investments, the victim was manipulated into transferring larger sums under the pretext of doubling or tripling profits through online bets.
Upon receiving multiple complaints via the 1930 Cyber Helpline and the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, a team led by DySP Anila Anand of the CID-Crime Branch launched an investigation. The probe revealed that the accused had created fake gaming and phishing websites to extract sensitive banking details and route funds through a network of mule bank accounts.
During the arrests, authorities seized passbooks, cheque books, mobile phones, SIM cards, GST certificates, Aadhaar and PAN cards, pointing to a meticulously planned cyber fraud operation. Several bank accounts linked to the scam have been frozen as part of the investigation.
Officials said further efforts are underway to trace other members of the racket and uncover the full extent of the financial trail.
