Delhi Police Solves Rs 22 Lakh Scam, Busts Investment Fraud Racket

In a major crackdown, the Cyber Police Station of Delhi's South-West District has busted a well-organised investment fraud syndicate operating across Delhi and Mumbai, arresting 11 accused involved in duping a senior citizen of Rs 22.67 lakh. 

The police have also recovered a large cache of digital devices, fake SIM cards, banking instruments and forged documents used in the crime.

While speaking to the NDTV, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of the South West district Amit Goel said that the case was registered on November 21 last year, based on a complaint by a 60-year-old victim, who was lured into investing through a fraudulent Facebook advertisement. The advertisement misused a speech of the Finance Minister and falsely promoted AI-based trading platforms promising high returns.

After registering on the platform, the victim was contacted by individuals posing as investment advisors. They convinced him to invest money through apps such as "Mudraone" and a web-based platform. Funds were transferred in the name of a private company, after which the accused stopped communication and disappeared.

A special investigation team deployed technical surveillance, money trail tracking, call detail record analysis and digital footprint examination to crack the case. The probe led investigators to a network operating out of Rohini and Netaji Subhash Place (NSP) in Delhi, where the accused were running front offices to open and manage mule bank accounts, added Additional DCP Abhimanyu Poswal. 

Police raids in Delhi led to the arrest of seven accused, while further investigation traced the money trail to Mumbai. Subsequent raids in Rajasthan's Beawar district resulted in the arrest of four more individuals who were part of the network supplying mule accounts.

Investigators revealed that the syndicate created and operated multiple bank accounts using fake documents. These accounts were then handed over to cyber fraudsters, allegedly based in Cambodia, who used them to route and siphon off cheated money through layered transactions.

The operation resulted in the recovery of 40 mobile phones, 92 fake SIM cards, 39 passbooks and chequebooks, 27 ATM cards, four PAN cards, laptops, desktops, POS machines, UPI scanners and a printer, along with forged documents used for opening bank accounts.

Police said the racket functioned through a structured network involving front-end account creators and back-end operators managing financial transactions. The accused also tested mule accounts before deploying them for fraud.

Further investigation is underway to identify other members of the syndicate and trace additional victims linked to the network.