Mumbai-based online casino racket busted in Delhi, 9 held

New Delhi, Sep 8 (PTI) A Mumbai-based online casino racket that allegedly lured people through suspicious links, QR codes and OTPs was busted in the national capital. The kingpin of the racket was among the nine individuals arrested in the case, an official said on Monday.

On September 5, a joint team carried out the operation following a tip-off about illegal online gambling near the DDA Market in Sultanpuri of Delhi's outer district.

"The team raided the spot and apprehended nine people while they were engaged in online gambling. They attempted to flee upon seeing the police team but were overpowered. Cash amounting to Rs 85,320, six computer systems, and other gambling articles were recovered from the site," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer) Sachin Sharma said.

Police said they have arrested Bhuvender alias Bhupender (48), Suraj (26), Mayank (20), Rahul (26), Rohan (23), Rajender Gupta (40), Dharamvir (33), Dilshad Ahmed (33) and Rajesh Gupta (32) from Sultanpuri.

"Bhupender is the kingpin of the racket and has previously been involved in five other cases under the Delhi Public Gambling Act. A case has been registered and further investigation is underway," the DCP added.

During the questioning of the suspects, it came to light that the gang allegedly operated an illegal online casino application that was circulated through suspicious download links hosted outside official application stores. The links were often shared with potential victims through messaging platforms using QR codes, the police mentioned.

"Once the victims scanned the code, they were prompted to install the application and enter an OTP to gain access. The application encouraged users to purchase points with real money to participate in online gambling," the DCP said.

Police further noted that the operators would run the application for two to three months, during which they amassed money from unsuspecting users. Once the cycle was complete, the application was deactivated, and a fresh link was circulated to lure more people, perpetuating the fraudulent scheme.

This systematic approach allowed the accused to keep trapping new victims while concealing their identities behind constantly changing platforms, the police stated.

Further investigation is in progress to identify other links to the racket. PTI BM BM MPL MPL