Rajasthan youth held for cheating Telangana man of Rs 4.20 lakh

Hyderabad: A Rajasthan youth has been arrested for defrauding a Telangana resident in Adilabad of Rs 4.20 lakh through unauthorised transactions from the latter’s bank accounts.

The accused, Dinesh Patel, aged 23, was arrested in Gujarat and has been connected with at least 220 complaints across India and 20 in Telangana alone.

Akhil Mahajan, Adilabad Superintendent of Police, during a press conference on Monday, October 26, said Patel was traced via technical evidence, phone numbers, and online transaction records. The probe stems from a complaint by a resident of Sangidi village under the Bela police station limits. The victim said he received a link to ‘royalescort.com’ from an unknown number on WhatsApp.

🚔 బేల పోలీసుల చేతికి అంతర్రాష్ట్ర సైబర్ నేరగాడు దినేష్ పటేల్ (23). నకిలీ లింకులతో రూ.4.20 లక్షల మోసం. దేశవ్యాప్తంగా 220 ఫిర్యాదులు, తెలంగాణలో 20. బాధితుడికి రూ.2 లక్షలు తిరిగి అందజేత. సైబర్ మోసాలపై అప్రమత్తంగా ఉండండి. 📞1930#AdilabadPolice #CyberCrime pic.twitter.com/JR0iIwzyUi

— Akhil Mahajan IPS (@adilabad_sp) October 26, 2026

After opening the link, he was directed to pay Rs 2,200 through PhonePe. Rs 4,20,210 was instead debited from accounts linked to his credit cards through 16 transactions, which he never authorised, he said.

The Bela police registered a case and launched a probe. They found that the suspect, Patel, used other people’s IDs to buy SIM cards and used them to advertise fake escort websites on Instagram.

Police said victims who clicked the links were contacted on Telegram and WhatsApp, where they were promised services in exchange for money. However, these services were never delivered. Police added that the money taken from victims was routed through mule bank accounts. When victims paid by credit card, the suspect allegedly bought gift cards on platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart to purchase goods.

Police suspect the accused may be involved in similar cyber fraud cases across the country. In Hyderabad, cases have already been registered under the Osmania University, Vanasthalipuram, and Narsingi police stations. Authorities are currently examining seized electronic devices for further evidence and to check for links to additional crimes.

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