New Delhi: 9 arrested for duping people of Rs 2.38 cr

New Delhi: Delhi Police has busted a cybercrime racket and arrested nine people, including a woman, who duped people on the pretext of high returns from investment in share market, officials said on Monday.

The police said the accused have collected around Rs 2.38 crore after cheating four people and efforts are underway to recover this amount. “On January 17, a complaint of Vishal Sodhi was received at IFSO (special cell) regarding cheating on the pretext of investment through trading applications. Similar complaints were also received from three other people Manoj Kumar, Rajbir Yadav and Shailendra Kumar,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (IFSO) Hemant Tiwari said.

The victims told the police that they were added to a messenger group where online tutorials were conducted to train them on stock market trading. The complainants were then lured to invest in multiple companies through their respective bank accounts and they invested a total amount of around Rs 2.38 crore.

“Based on the complaints, an FIR was registered and further investigation was taken up,” the DCP said. During the investigation, it was found 25 multiple-beneficiary bank accounts in which the fraudsters asked the complainants to deposit their money. Tracing the digital footprint of the accused and trail of the cheated money, the police identified a suspect as Munish Sharma (37). “A raid was conducted and Sharma was arrested from the Paschim Vihar area in Delhi. In his instance, eight more accused persons actively involved in the crime were arrested,” the DCP said. The latest arrest in the case was made on May 18, he said. According to the police, accused Vikas Bansal and his associates Manoj Bansal, Tushar Garg and others have floated more than 400 bogus firms and also opened over 400 bank accounts linked to these firms.

The fraudsters are using these bank accounts to siphon off the cheated money. To park the proceeds of their crime, the accused used to contact indigent people and convinced them to open bank accounts in their names in lieu of a handsome amount, he said.