New Delhi, June 12: In a major crackdown on motor vehicle theft and habitual offenders, Delhi Police have arrested six accused persons and recovered 15 stolen two-wheelers in a series of coordinated operations carried out across multiple police stations.

According to an official press release, the operations were conducted by teams of Delhi Police West District, including Police Station Tilak Nagar, AATS/West District, PS Mayapuri and PP Madipur/PS Punjabi Bagh. The drive also led to the resolution of 11 motor vehicle theft cases and recovery of one illegal weapon.

“West District Police cracks down on auto-lifters & habitual property offenders; 06 accused arrested, 15 stolen two-wheelers recovered, 11 cases worked out,” the press release stated.

The police said the action was part of a sustained drive against “motor vehicle theft, property offences and habitual criminals” using technical surveillance, secret information and field intelligence.

During the operations, “a total of six accused persons were apprehended and fifteen stolen two-wheelers, along with one illegal button-actuated knife, were recovered,” the release said.

In one of the key cases, police arrested Gurpreet Singh @ Lalli, described as a “notorious auto-lifter and BC of PS Tilak Nagar”, following a trap near M-Block Park, Najafgarh Road. Police recovered two stolen motorcycles and one scooty from him. The accused also led to the recovery of another stolen motorcycle during interrogation.

In another major operation, AATS/West District apprehended Md. Saddam and Suraj near ESI Metro Station Parking, Rajouri Garden, while they were travelling on a stolen Honda Activa. Their interrogation led to the recovery of six additional stolen two-wheelers.

Police said the accused were found to be supplying stolen vehicles to a “Mewati gang”, and further investigation is underway to trace the wider syndicate.

In a separate case, Police Station Mayapuri solved a motorcycle theft within three days by analysing CCTV footage and technical inputs. Two accused were arrested from Rohini, leading to the recovery of four stolen motorcycles linked to multiple police station cases.

In another incident, vigilant staff of Police Post Madipur apprehended Rajeev Gupta near Jheel Park after he attempted to flee. A stolen scooty and a button-actuated knife were recovered from his possession.

The West District Police said the overall operation resulted in the arrest of six accused, recovery of 11 motorcycles and four scooties, and registration of one Arms Act case along with 11 motor vehicle theft cases being worked out.

The police described the action as the result of “professional investigation, field intelligence and vigilant policing” aimed at curbing street crime and improving public safety.

New Delhi, June 11: The Ministry of Home Affairs has issued a fresh advisory warning about the growing misuse of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by cybercriminals to create highly convincing deepfake videos and synthetic identities aimed at compromising financial and digital ecosystems.

According to the advisory issued by the National Cybercrime Threat Analytics Unit (NCTAU) under the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) of the Home Ministry, cyber fraudsters are increasingly leveraging advanced AI tools to generate realistic digital impersonations capable of deceiving authentication systems.

“These technologies may be exploited to bypass facial authentication, liveness verification, Video-KYC, account recovery, and unauthorised access to financial and digital services. Fraudsters may attempt to gain unauthorised access to accounts by using facial recordings obtained through deceptive video calls, fake online job interviews or social engineering tactics,” the advisory read.

Elaborating on the pattern observed in such cybercrimes, the NCTAU outlined a multi-stage modus operandi employed by fraudsters. The process often begins with an initial approach through social media networks, messaging platforms, job portals, dating applications, or direct phone calls.

Once communication is established, attackers move to the next phase by gathering facial data. The advisory noted that facial information may already be available through publicly accessible online content. In many cases, however, victims are persuaded to perform specific facial actions such as looking directly at a screen, turning their heads, blinking repeatedly, or speaking on camera.

The collected recordings are then processed using AI-powered deepfake technologies. Through these tools, cybercriminals can create highly realistic digital replicas that mimic a person’s facial expressions, eye movements, gestures, and even their voice.

The advisory warned that if systems lack adequate deepfake detection capabilities, these fabricated identities may be used to bypass facial authentication and liveness verification checks.

Authorities further cautioned that the misuse of such AI-generated content could facilitate fraudulent Know Your Customer (KYC) verification processes. By successfully defeating identity verification safeguards adopted by financial institutions, fraudsters may be able to create, activate or operate financial accounts for illegal purposes.

To counter these evolving threats, the NCTAU has recommended several security measures for institutions as well as individuals. The advisory stated that customer onboarding systems, including those operated by fintech firms, should incorporate robust mechanisms capable of detecting deepfakes and other forms of synthetically generated content.

“Locking your biometric profile is the strongest defence against this type of remote identity theft,” the advisory stated.

In addition, individuals have been advised to closely monitor email notifications and alerts for any unauthorised login attempts or suspicious authentication activities that may indicate an attempt to misuse their identity.

The advisory emphasised that any signs of financial fraud or identity theft should be reported immediately. Citizens have been encouraged to document incidents through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and provide relevant information, including the fraudster’s contact details and any video links involved in the scam.

The NCTAU also warned users to remain vigilant about sudden disruptions in mobile network services, noting that such incidents could indicate a fraudulent SIM swap attack.

Issuing a broader caution, the advisory clarified that it has been released to raise awareness about emerging AI-enabled identity fraud techniques. It added that references to identity verification systems and authentication processes are based on observed threat trends and “do not imply vulnerabilities or compromise of any specific organisation, platform, or service.”

Mumbai, June 11: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday said that it has successfully secured the deportation of Red Notice subject Ganesh Balaso Kale from Thailand to India.

The deportation process was carried out in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), and the Embassy of India in Bangkok.

According to the officials, Kale is wanted in connection with cybercrime fraud, in which victims were lured by the offer of online part-time jobs. They were asked to make certain deposits as monetary investments and were later defrauded.

Investigators said that the accused used to operate a network of cyber financial criminals by involving various unsuspecting persons in the scam. “He used to lure individuals by promising interest/commission in exchange for allowing the use of their bank accounts for the transfer of illicit funds and subsequently utilised such accounts to cheat multiple innocent victims,” the officials said.

“The subject also allegedly instructed co-accused persons to arrange mobile phones and procure fake SIM cards to facilitate the commission of offences,” the CBI officials added.

Based on the Interpol Red Notice, the accused was located in Thailand. He was detained by the Thai Authorities on May 24 in Bangkok. Following due legal proceedings and close coordination between Indian and Thai authorities, the accused was successfully deported to India.

Officials announced that a Red Corner Notice for Kale was issued in May. He was successfully located, apprehended, and returned to India within about 20 days of the notice.

On Thursday, the accused arrived at Mumbai Airport, where he was taken into custody by the Maharashtra Police’s Cyber Cell.

“The CBI, as the National Central Bureau for INTERPOL in India, coordinates with all Law Enforcement Agencies in India through BHARATPOL for assistance via INTERPOL channels,” officials said.

Investigators said that over 160 wanted criminals have been successfully brought back to India in the last few years through coordination between different agencies.