ATM tricksters from Haryana held for cheating apple grower

In a swift operation, Solan police arrested two Haryana residents for duping an apple grower of over Rs 78,000 by cleverly swapping his ATM card.

Rajendra, an apple farmer from Jubbal, lodged a complaint on September 8 after discovering suspicious withdrawals from his account. The day before, while withdrawing money from an Axis Bank ATM at Kather bypass, two men entered, struck up a conversation and discreetly replaced his UCO Bank ATM card with a similar one. Unaware, Rajendra pocketed the fake card. Within an hour, multiple debit messages alerted him. By the next day, a total of nine fraudulent transactions amounting to Rs 78,162 had been made.

Acting on the FIR, police scrutinised CCTV footage from the ATM and surrounding areas, identifying both suspects and their WagonR car. A raid in Kaithal led to the arrest of Sonu Kumar (27) and Shivdev Sharma alias Munna (30), both from Siwan. The vehicle was also seized.

Investigations revealed that Sonu has 13 previous cases of theft and fraud, while Shivdev faces charges linked to a vehicle accident.

Solan SP Gaurav Singh confirmed the arrests, praising the prompt action that foiled yet another inter-state ATM fraud racket.