Hyderabad (PTI): Police on Monday said its cybercrime wing arrested five persons and dismantled a major racket involved in the "illegal distribution of copyrighted films", including recent Telugu releases.

The prime accused, Ashwani Kumar (21) of Patna, was identified as the kingpin behind the leakage of HD movies before their theatrical release.

Police said Kumar had hacked several government websites, including the governments of Bihar and Jharkhand.

“He hacked the main servers of digital media companies, copied HD movies, and distributed them via Telegram channels. He also shared them with gaming and betting organisers,” Hyderabad Police Commissioner C V Anand told reporters.

The arrests follow a comprehensive investigation into the piracy of several recent Telugu films, including

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