The Cyber Cell of Delhi Police has arrested a Nigerian national, Patrick Ngomere, for allegedly hacking a pharmaceutical company’s email and siphoning off Rs 11.73 lakh.
Using XE.com, a currency conversion platform, the Rs11.73 lakh (Rs1,173,000) the suspect syphoned from the pharmaceutical firm is equivalent to $13,361.
This is just as nother Nigerian resident involved in a cocaine smuggling ring was arrested in Gurugram by Special Task Force (STF) Siliguri.
The accused, identified as Andrew Leo Obi Chimezie Mwakamma Zyad Abbas alias Ziko (37 years), had been residing in Gurugram for the past 12 years and was allegedly operating a drug syndicate spanning North Bengal, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bihar.
The accused, Patrick Ngomere, a Greater Noida resident, was caught in a police trap near an ATM and the fraud was reported via the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal.
Ngomere’s mobile matched the one linked to the fraudulent bank account, and he later confessed.
The scam began on December 10, when Janani Family Care Pvt. Ltd. received an email impersonating its vendor, Accent Pharma, requesting payment to a new account.
Unaware, the company transferred Rs 11.76 lakh.
Upon verification, the fraud was uncovered. Investigators traced the hacked email to Nigeria and tracked the money to a Manipur bank account.
Surveillance footage led to Ngomere’s arrest.
He was found without a valid Indian visa and is suspected to be part of a larger syndicate.
An FIR has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Foreigners Act. Investigations continue.
Reports indicate that the arrest in the smuggling ring was made following the arrest of one Sartaj Alam around a month ago from Khalpara area of Siliguri, where he was caught with 93 grams of cocaine.
Upon interrogation, Alam revealed the involvement of Passang Moktan, a resident of Kurseong, in the drug trade.
Moktan was subsequently arrested from Methibari on January 25.
During interrogation, Moktan admitted to running a widespread cocaine distribution network from a rented house in Siliguri and he had been sourcing cocaine from Andrew for the past five years.
Following this, STF officials from Siliguri conducted a raid at Obi’s residence in Gurugram and arrested him.
The raid also led to the recovery of three passports under three different names, mobile phones, and various other incriminating documents, raising suspicions about his identity and possible international connections.
Obi was brought to Siliguri in a five-day transit remand from Gurgaon and was produced at the Siliguri Court on Thursday.
First published in Millennium Post, India