In a dramatic turn of events, the key suspect in a whale phishing scam, Sophia Siddique Alias Sania Alias Gudia, managed to escape from Pune Police custody during her train journey back to Pune. The 24-year-old suspect had been arrested in Faridabad, Haryana, on February 17th in connection with a Rs. 4 crore cyber scam targeting a real estate company.
Sophia Siddique, identified as the mastermind behind the whale phishing crimes, executed her escape plan at Ratlam Station while being transported back to Pune on the Duronto Express train.
Whale phishing, also known as CEO fraud, targets high-profile individuals within organizations who have access to sensitive information or financial resources. Perpetrators impersonate CEOs to manipulate victims into divulging confidential data or approving substantial transactions. Notably, similar scams have affected organizations, including the Serum Institute of India, which lost Rs 1 crore to this fraudulent activity.
The Pune Police initiated a search operation using CCTV footage, tracing the suspect to Kota. A joint probe and search, involving both the railway police of Kota, Rajasthan, and Pune Police, were launched upon realizing that Sophia Siddique had successfully evaded capture.
A senior police officer in Pune commented, “Our information suggests that the suspect gave the police team a slip sometime around 4:00 am on Sunday. When the team realized that she was gone, the police team reported the incident to the Government Railway Police (GRP) unit in Kota. An offense was registered, and a joint search has been launched by the GRP team and our team.”
In the wake of this incident, concerns over cyber scams, particularly whale phishing crimes, have been heightened, with half a dozen reported cases in Pune since July 2023, resulting in substantial financial losses for various organizations.
