Gurugram police busted a cyber-fraud gang involved in an investment scam worth over Rs 2.65 crore and arrested six persons for allegedly supplying bank accounts to a Dubai-based syndicate. The accused allegedly opened bank accounts through fake firms and supplied them to the syndicate.
Police recovered three laptops, 16 mobile phones, 90 ATM cards, 42 cheque books, 35 SIM cards, stamps of four firms and a passport bearing a Dubai visa from the accused.
According to police, a complaint was received at the Cyber Crime Police Station (East) on Sunday. The complainant alleged that he had been added to fake WhatsApp groups impersonating reputed investment companies. The fraudsters lured him into investing through a fake investment application by promising exceptionally high returns. Believing the scheme to be genuine, the complainant transferred a total of Rs 2,65,55,000 to various bank accounts. When he later attempted to withdraw his invested amount and the promised profits, the accused demanded additional deposits, at which point he realised he had been scammed.
Based on the complaint, an FIR was registered and the investigation was entrusted to the Special Cyber Crime Unit, Sector 56. Under the supervision of Gaurav Fogat, ACP (Crime), the Special Cyber Crime Unit conducted a detailed investigation using technical evidence and intelligence, leading to the arrest of six accused.
The arrested accused were identified as Sonu Chaudhary (23), a resident of Bhikkanpur village in Ghaziabad, presently residing in Balaji Enclave, Ghaziabad; Puneet Chaudhary (27), a resident of Bhikkanpur village in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, presently residing in Omaxe City, Bahadurgarh, Jhajjar, Haryana; Vikas (22), a resident of Gautam Buddh Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, presently residing in Omaxe City, Bahadurgarh; Abhishek Sharma (23), a resident of Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, presently residing in Omaxe City, Bahadurgarh; Dushyant Chaudhary (25), a resident of Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, presently residing in Omaxe City, Bahadurgarh; and Samrat Sibbal (46), a resident of Uttam Nagar, Delhi.
Police first arrested Sonu Chaudhary from Ghaziabad. Subsequently, Puneet Chaudhary, Vikas, Abhishek Sharma and Dushyant Chaudhary were arrested on Sunday from a rented flat in Omaxe City, Bahadurgarh, Jhajjar. Samrat Sibbal was arrested the same day from Uttam Nagar, Delhi.
During interrogation, investigators found that approximately Rs 6,00,000 of the defrauded amount had been transferred to the bank account of a private firm operated by Sonu Chaudhary. Sonu disclosed that he had opened the firm’s bank account at the request of Puneet Chaudhary and handed it over to him in exchange for Rs 60,000.
“Accused Puneet revealed that he, along with Samrat Sibbal, was working for a Dubai-based cyber fraud syndicate. The bank account was allegedly supplied to the syndicate, which used such accounts to receive proceeds of cyber fraud. Around 5 per cent commission was earned by routing the stolen funds through multiple bank accounts. Puneet had rented a flat in Bahadurgarh for Rs 17,000 per month, which was allegedly used as an operational hub for registering fake firms, opening bank accounts in the names of various individuals and entities, creating fake email IDs and preparing forged documents used in cyber fraud operations”, said Gaurav Fogat, ACP (Crime).
Police said Puneet had reportedly employed Abhishek Sharma, Vikas and Dushyant Chaudhary on monthly salaries ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000. Their role was to facilitate the opening of bank accounts, prepare supporting documentation and supply these accounts to the Dubai-based cyber fraud syndicate. Police alleged that he had travelled to Dubai several times and supplied more than 200 bank accounts to the syndicate. A passport bearing a Dubai visa was recovered from his possession. The investigation also revealed that he had recently returned from Dubai.
“We are now conducting an extensive investigation into the Dubai-based operatives, the money trail of the defrauded funds, and similar cyber fraud cases linked to the syndicate across different states. Investigators are continuing to interrogate the accused regarding their associates, fake firms, bank accounts, the Dubai-based cyber fraud syndicate, the flow of the proceeds of crime and cyber fraud cases committed in other states. A further probe is under way”, added ACP Fogat.