Angul: In a breakthrough, the Angul Police has busted a five-member cyber crime gang involved in defrauding people. The action came during the investigation of a ₹52-lakh fraud case targeting a local businessman.

Angul SP Rahul Jain informed three of the accused were arrested from Soro (Balasore district), while one each was nabbed from Bhadrak and Darjeeling (West Bengal).

The gang lured victims, mainly businessmen, retired officials, bank employees, and senior citizens, by promising high returns through a fraudulent trading app. Once convinced, the victims were duped of large sums of money.

The police recovered ₹2.28 lakh in cash, a luxury car, multiple bank passbooks and cheque books, a Rolex watch and a gold chain.

The SP added the gang’s network extends beyond Odisha to Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Jammu. The Cyber Police are currently tracing the mastermind behind the racket, and further investigation is underway.