Police bust investment fraud racket

NEW DELHI: Delhi Police has busted a cyber fraud racket operating through a fake online investment platform and arrested three people for allegedly duping a victim of over Rs 47 lakh, an official said on Sunday.

The accused were arrested on Saturday in connection with the case registered in the southwest district on the complaint of a victim who claimed fraudsters duped him of Rs 47.20 lakh by luring him into investing in stocks, equities, and IPOs via a fraudulent online platform, police said.

During the investigation, police identified a current account in the name of a private firm as a key conduit, into which the accused transferred Rs 3 lakh of the

defrauded amount.

“Further analysis revealed that the account was linked to at least 12 cyber fraud complaints, establishing it as a “Layer-1” account used for routing cheated funds,” a senior police officer said.

A team conducted extensive interstate operations across Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh and adjoining regions using technical surveillance and field intelligence.

Vishal Chauhan, 47, a resident of Haryana’s Jind, was apprehended first, the police said, adding that he had knowingly shared his bank account credentials, SIM card, debit card and cheque book with other members on a commission basis.

Chauhan received Rs 50,000 for routing illegal transactions. Police arrested mediator Ritvik Yadav and Priyal Pratap Yadav, recovering phones. The trio were part of a syndicate using bank accounts to channel cyber fraud proceeds.