A Class 10 boy created a fake Twitter account of Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police OP Singh to speed up action by Gorakhpur police in a cheating case through which his elder brother lost Rs 45,000, The Times of India reported.
He fooled the police into believing that it was the DGP’s real account and gave them directions the account – the cops took swift action in the complaint.
They recovered Rs 30,000 out of the Rs 45,000 that the boy’s brother had lost. The accused also promised to return the remaining amount soon, TOI reported.
The matter came to light over a month ago, and that’s when the DGP’s office reported the matter to the Hazratganj police and a case was registered. The case was then transferred to the Cyber Cell, which found that the account was being run from a phone in Gorakhpur’s Maharajganj area.
The Cyber Cell further investigated the case and detained the boy and his friend on 21 April.
When questioned, he said that he got the idea from another boy of his village and then created the Twitter handle using his friend’s phone.Arun Kumar Singh, Cyber Cell Inspector, to ToI
Both the boys were let off with a stern warning.
We took a reformative approach and let off both the school-going kids, as any action would have affected their future.OP Singh to ToI
Why Create a Fake Account?
The boy told the police that his brother was fooled by a man named Sadiq Ansari of Maharajganj, who promised him a job in Dubai and took Rs 45,000 from him. But the promise was never met and the family lodged a complaint with the Gulharia Bazaar police station.
According to the boy, the police didn’t help them – that’s when he made a fake account, as suggested by another village boy, in the name of the DGP and instructed the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) to expedite the case.
The trick worked, as the Gorakhpur SSP directed the Maharajganj cops to speed up the process and take action, as per the instructions of the DGP given via Twitter.
As misuse of the Twitter account came to light, state police chief’s PRO Rahul Srivastava said that Twitter users can file complaints if they came across any fake Twitter accounts in the name of serving IPS/PPS officers at @UPPViralCheck.
Twitter Can Relate
People on Twitter seemed to think that though the actions of the boy were unethical, they served to highlight the negligence and nonchalance of the the local police.
(With inputs from The Times of India)
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