Deputy Inspector General of Police Ravindra Yadav admitted that it was a matter of concern that people were falling prey to these gangs, who are mostly international criminals.
He said in several cases, the gangs operate a certain bank account and abandon it after getting money from the victim.
The 'know your customer' (KYC) policy of the banks usually doesn't allow dubious customers to open accounts, but the increasing competition among the banks to get more clients has left KYC policy ignored on several instances, he said, adding that the help of RBI's regional office would be taken to crackdown on these gangs.
These gangs sent emails or text messages on the mobile phone of the victims informing them about lottery won, amounting to millions. The victims who fall prey to the prank email or sms are asked to pay a processing fee to get the lottery amount. People have been spending money, amounting to lakhs, in a bid to become rich overnight, he said.
Police have appealed to the people to refrain from entertaining any such emails or sms.