Puri: Puri Cyber Crime Police has arrested a man from Anugola district for allegedly impersonating an IAS officer and coercing a woman he contacted through a matrimonial platform into opening bank accounts in her name, resulting in loans worth ₹6.5 lakh.

According to the police, the accused, identified as Balabhadra Mishra, allegedly contacted the complainant through the Bharat Matrimony app while introducing himself as an Additional Secretary in Chhattisgarh. He later allegedly threatened to have her transferred to the KBK (Kalahandi-Balangir-Koraput) region.

According to the complaint, the accused obtained the woman's mobile number through the matrimonial platform and subsequently established contact with her. He allegedly used his false official identity and threats of transfer to pressure her into following his instructions.

Police said the accused forced the woman to open three bank accounts with the State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank and Indian Overseas Bank. The accounts were allegedly linked to the accused's mobile number.

He subsequently took possession of the passbooks, cheque books, debit cards and credit cards associated with the accounts, allegedly exercising control over the woman's banking facilities.

The woman later discovered loans amounting to ₹6.5 lakh had been taken in her name. Getting suspicious about the transactions, she approached the Puri Cyber Crime Police and lodged a complaint.

Acting on the complaint, police investigated the case and arrested Mishra.

During the operation, police seized a Toyota car, ₹10,000 in cash, 14 bank passbooks, nine cheque books and 17 debit and credit cards from the accused.

Police also revealed the accused had allegedly been involved in previous serious cyber fraud cases. Complaints against him are reportedly registered at police stations in Sambalpur and two police stations in Bhubaneswar.

Further investigation is underway to establish the full extent of the alleged fraud and determine whether other people were targeted using a similar modus operandi.