The Hyderabad police in India recently dismantled a scam syndicate that manipulated digital Satta gambling through fake social media accounts, arresting six main suspects during a raid.
According to the Hans India newspaper, the operation was jointly conducted by the Special Task Force of the Hyderabad Police Commissioner's office (Central Region) and the Amberpet Police Station. The raid took place in a rented apartment in the Bathakammakunta area of Bagh Amberpet.
The arrested individuals, aged between 23 and 30, include carpenter Voddepelli Naveen, and Pudari Sai Kiran, Soma Mahender, Bingi Sai Kiran, Bingi Avinash, and Sana Sai Preetham. The police revealed that the group had rented the place two months ago, with a monthly rent of 14,000 rupees, using it as their operational base. They registered multiple fake Facebook accounts using unverified phone numbers, posted gambling ads, and redirected traffic.
The so-called "digital Satta" or "Matka" is an illegal form of digital lottery gambling, which is banned in many parts of India. The gang lured gamblers to pay registration fees of 1,000 to 2,000 rupees to participate in the gambling, while also creating fake winning videos to attract more people. The gambling funds were collected through QR code payments, UPI apps, and mobile transfers.
The police noted that the gang manipulated the gambling outcomes by controlling the backend results, leading gamblers to continue betting and ultimately suffer heavy losses.
During the enforcement, the police seized 17 mobile phones, a laptop, vehicles, and related electronic devices, froze bank accounts with funds of 79,000 rupees, with the total amount involved in the case reaching approximately 2 million rupees (about 23,000 US dollars). Currently, the six suspects and all seized items have been handed over to the Amberpet police for further investigation.
