Chennai, Sept 15:
The CB-CID has arrested a 28-year-old man from Rajasthan in connection with an AI-generated deepfake video impersonating Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay and allegedly used to cheat people by promising financial assistance.
The video, which carried Hindi audio, was circulated on Facebook and other social media platforms. It showed an AI-generated version of the Chief Minister asking members of the public to contact a WhatsApp number for financial help.
The CB-CID Cyber Crime Cell registered a case on September 1 and approached Meta seeking details of the fake account and digital logs. Investigation revealed that similar AI-generated videos were allegedly being used to defraud people in Madhya Pradesh and other States.
Based on digital trails and information obtained from service providers, a special team traced the suspect’s movements to Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. With the assistance of Rajasthan Police, Shyabu Khan of Lachhmangarh in Alwar district was arrested on September 12.
He was brought to Tamil Nadu on a transit warrant and remanded in judicial custody. Police have also obtained the statement and evidence of a fraud victim from Madhya Pradesh and are investigating whether Khan acted alone or was part of a larger network.