The police commissionerate on Thursday detained 32 people in Cuttack following raids in connection with a crypto currency scam.
Of those detained, 31 are from Bengal. While 28 of them were detained following raids on two hotels in Cuttack’s Sikharpur, the other four were caught from Puri, where they were hiding.
Cuttack deputy commissioner of police (DCP), Khilari Rishikesh Dnyandeo said: “We raided the hotels following specific tip-off. Of the 32 detained, one is from Odisha and others are from Bengal.”
The DCP said that the main accused ran a crypto trading platform called “OTU World”, promising high returns to the investors. He was, however, unable to return their money.
According to the police, five persons duped the investors, promising them high returns on investment, and then allegedly went into hiding. After getting to know their whereabouts, some of the investors allegedly abducted them.
Police said two cases have been registered in connection with the case — one related to cheating investors and the other regarding the abduction.
Four luxury cars, 32 mobile phones and a crypto wallet device have been seized from the detainees. “They will be forwarded to court after further verification,” said the DCP.
Job racket arrest
Odisha Police on Thursday arrested two persons for allegedly duping people with false promises of getting them jobs.
Superintendent of police (SP) Mukesh Kumar Bhamoo said the accused persons, along with other associates, created a fake company, claiming that it was authorised to provide appointments for sanitation work in four western Odisha districts.
The duo collected ₹12,000 per applicant from people in Sambalpur, Bargarh, Boudh and Sonepur districts, promising jobs with a daily wage of ₹400, he said.
Additional reporting by PTI