Representative image of a jail cell.
Credit: iStock Photo
The High Grounds police, part of the central division, have arrested four men from outside the state who are accused of duping aspirants of medical courses through a consultancy firm. The arrested are Ashuthosh, Basanth Kumar, and Ashish from Bihar, and Nikhil Kumar from Uttarakhand.
According to the police, the suspects established a consultancy firm called Edutancy Consultancy Services Pvt Ltd on Cunningham Road. They gathered information about individuals who couldn't pass the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) once the list was released on its website.
In their office, they hired 10 people for tele-calling to contact potential victims. "They would convince the victims that they could secure them a medical seat and even made them open bank accounts using fake documents," a senior police officer said.
Once the victims made payments, the suspects provided them with bank cheques as a guarantee. However, the cheques bounced. "All key individuals have been apprehended, while some others remain at large. Efforts are underway to apprehend them," added the officer.
The police cracked the case after a woman from Mysuru who was cheated out of Rs 10.80 lakh and filed a complaint. "We have sealed their office and seized five PCs, one laptop, 10 mobile phones, and 10 chequebooks, along with details of NEET candidates. Their bank accounts have also been frozen,” the officer said.