The Kochi City Cyber Police, probing a major online trading fraud in which a pharmaceuticals businessman was duped of ₹25 crore, have arrested two men from Hyderabad. The arrested men have been identified as Allamraju Satyanarayana Murthy, 36, and Banka Tyson Raju, 34, who allegedly handled around ₹16 crore of the defrauded amount. Five people had earlier been arrested in the case.
The scam was allegedly carried out through a website purportedly based in Cyprus. Victims were reportedly lured into online trading with promises of high returns. Cases against the platform have been registered across multiple States, the Kochi City Police said in a release.
The investigation team traced the accused to Hyderabad and arrested them after securing court warrants. The duo had allegedly been leading a lavish lifestyle using the proceeds of the crime. The police said Mr. Murthy, a former IT employee, owns an IT firm and a construction company. Investigators suspect his rapid business expansion was funded through cyber fraud.