Delhi Police busts interstate gang of fraudsters linked to Cambodia; 4 held, Rs 8.04 lakh seized

New Delhi, Sep 26 (PTI) The Delhi Police has arrested four members of an interstate cyber-fraud gang with links to operators in Cambodia for allegedly duping a man of Rs 8.04 lakh through a fake trading application, an official said on Friday.

Accused Manik Agrawal (25), Abdullah alias Lucifer (23), Mohammad Amir alias Rocky (26) and Shanmiya Khan were nabbed following a probe that revealed fraudulent transactions of approximately Rs 3 crore across multiple states and Union territories within three days.

"The gang lured the victim, a businessman, into investing in a fraudulent platform called 101 Shoonya Wealth Circle, promising assured returns and showing fake IPO allotments worth Rs 34 lakh," a senior police officer said.

To gain his trust, an amount of Rs 5,000 was credited to his account. Later, a false loan entry of Rs 8 lakh was created in the app and the victim was threatened with penalties unless the amount was repaid. Under pressure, he transferred Rs 8.04 lakh to a private bank account in August.

A total of 16 complaints were linked to the bank account, revealing fraudulent transactions of approximately Rs 3 crore across multiple states and Union territories within three days.

Police used technical surveillance, digital-footprint analysis and money-trail tracking to trace the accused. Agrawal was arrested from Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh, followed by the apprehension of Abdullah in Khurja (Uttar Pradesh), Amir in Aligarh (Uttar Pradesh) and Khan in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.

"Investigations revealed that Shanmiya Khan was supplying accounts and coordinating with a handler named Jack, operating from abroad. The seized devices contained WhatsApp chats, e-mails and other evidence linking the accused to a wider network," the officer added.

CCTV footage confirmed that the suspects stayed together in Delhi hotels while executing the fraud. Technical analysis further indicated that the social media numbers used to lure the victims were active in Cambodia.

Police said Agrawal worked as an accountant and provided his bank account number for operations, Abdullah, a law student, facilitated testing of accounts, Amir managed fraudulent accounts and received commissions and Khan, a scrap dealer, supplied account credentials.

A case was registered and further investigations are underway to apprehend other absconding associates of the arrested men and dismantle the entire cyber fraud network. PTI SSJ RC