Patna high court to cops: Quiz bank officials in vishing frauds, cybercrime cases

PATNA: The Patna high court on Friday directed the state police and specialized investigating agencies to bring the “banking staff concerned’ within the periphery of their investigation into the vishing frauds and other cybercrimes prevailing in the state.
The single bench of Justice Sandeep Kumar, while hearing an anticipatory bail plea, directed the SSP of Patna, SPs of Muzaffarpur, Nawada, Nalanda and Sheikhpura as well as the state’s Economic Offences Unit (EOU) -- the nodal police wing to investigate cybercrimes in Bihar -- to expedite investigations and curb cybercrimes and vishing frauds made through deceptive phone calls by tracking the “insiders” of the banks from where the data base of the customers are “leaked”.
Justice Kumar orally cautioned the investigating agencies not to be rude with the bank officials during investigation. The court also expressed its displeasure on the attitude of the banks in escaping their responsibilities towards their customers who were falling prey to the vishing frauds. The matter will be next heard on January 27.
Additional public prosecutor Jharkhandi Upadhyay informed the court that cybercrime cases are being handled with an iron fist and in one of the vishing frauds probe, the swindled money was recovered. The court directed that the banks in other vishing fraud cases under investigation should also strive for return of their customers’ money after tracking the movement of the money debited fraudulently.
The Patna high court through the hearing of this anticipatory bail has been monitoring the crackdown on cyber criminals and vishing frauds in the state. The case is from Nawada. During the hearing of the case on October 21, 2021, the court had observed that “it cannot allow Nawada to become another Jamtara”.