Delhi Police arrests 4 men for Rs 100 cr investment scam using mule accounts fake sites

New Delhi, Jul 31 (PTI) Delhi Police has arrested four men for orchestrating a Rs 100 crore cyber fraud by luring victims through fake trading websites and routing the money through mule accounts opened in the names of financially vulnerable individuals, an official said on Thursday.
    Police arrested Sunny Mishra (22), Kuldeep Kumar (25), Gaurav (20) and Sumit Pradhan (27), an employee with a reputed bank, from Ludhiana on July 16, DCP (Crime) Aditya Gautam said.
    The gang’s digital trail linked them to 34 cases and cybercrime complaints across India, with a combined fraud amount exceeding Rs 100 crore, he said.
    “The syndicate operated through a web of fake trading platforms, targeting victims with the promise of high returns on investments. One such complainant, a Delhi-based businessman, reported being duped of Rs 48.35 lakh after being lured through social media by a woman posing as a financial advisor,” the DCP said.
    Police investigation involving digital surveillance and bank trail analysis revealed that the accused used a network of mule bank accounts created in the names of financially vulnerable individuals to route and withdraw the defrauded funds, the officer said.
    Sunny Mishra was found operating an account that received Rs 6.2 lakh directly from the complainant, while Kuldeep Kumar managed another account that received Rs 6 lakh from a shell entity, he added.
    “Gaurav played a key role in arranging multiple fake bank accounts and handed over the account credentials to Sumit Pradhan, an employee with a reputed bank, who in turn facilitated large-scale cash withdrawals while bypassing mandatory verifications,” the DCP said.
    A field unit posing as locals conducted surveillance in Ludhiana and arrested the accused, while a parallel cyber cell team provided real-time coordination from Delhi.
    During the raids, seven high-end mobile phones were seized, along with records of multiple mule accounts, many of which were connected to shell firms and fraudulent investment platforms.
    A single bank account linked to the shell company has been implicated in 22 complaints across Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Delhi, including cases of phishing, digital arrest scams, and fake investment frauds, the DCP said.
    Forensic analysis of social media chats revealed at least 24 more suspicious mule accounts, while 23 bank accounts directly linked to the accused have already been unearthed, he added.
    Many were found to be used for ‘layering’ – a method of disguising the origin of illegally obtained money – and cash withdrawal from fake investment schemes.
    Police said efforts are underway to identify more victims and uncover the full scale of the racket.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)