The Karnataka police probing the suicide of an elderly couple, who were duped of nearly Rs 60 lakh by cybercriminals, have arrested a man from Gujarat, they said on Monday.
The arrested accused has been identified as Chirag Jeevaraj Bhai Lakkad, a resident of Surat.
On March 27, Diogjeron Nazareth (83) and his wife Flaviana Nazareth (78) were found dead at their residence in Belagavi. Diogjeron had left behind a note, in which he claimed that he was trapped by cyber criminals. The cyber frauds impersonated Mumbai Crime Branch officials to extort money from him, the note also stated.
Diogjeron had allegedly transferred Rs 59.63 lakh to 22 bank accounts.
A police officer, who is part of the investigation, said: “Of the many transactions, in an RTGS transaction, Rs 6,10,000 was sent to a bank account where the account holder’s name was Balaji Industries. However, so far, we have not found any registered firm, which holds the account.”
“Lakkad had inserted a SIM card linked to the bank account of the said firm on his phone and the money was transferred to two other accounts via netbanking. It looks like he is part of a bigger nexus and was working for commission,” the police officer said, adding that the accused was sent to judicial custody.
Diogjeron worked at the Secretariat in Mumbai, and had shifted to Bidi village in Belagavi after retirement.
Police also said that Diogjeron had borrowed Rs 5 lakh from two friends and Rs 50,000 from a priest and also taken a gold loan of Rs 7.15 lakh.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd