Delhi police busts Rs 16 lakh investment scam, 4 held
New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Police in the national capital Delhi on Wednesday arrested four fraudsters involved in an investment scam worth Rs 16 lakh. A statement issued by the South West District Police said that a team from the Cyber Police Station arrested four cyber fraudsters - Manish Dilip Bhai Koshti (37), Mohammad Zaid A Sidi (28), Mohammad Ejaz Khimani (35) and Sheikh Abrar (27). All of them are residents of Ahmedabad, Gujarat. A total of six mobile phones, six debit cards and eight SIM cards used in the crime were recovered.
A complaint was received at Police Station Cyber/SWD through NCRP from A. Kumar of Palam Colony, Delhi, in which he stated that he was added to a WhatsApp group named “71 Abbott” and the admin and members introduced themselves as representatives of an investment firm.
They then lured him with promises of 300 percent profits, tricked him into making multiple payments in various installments, and ultimately defrauded him of ₹1.6 million. Based on the complaint, police registered a case on October 27 and began investigating.
Police officials said that after the complaint was filed, a special cyber police team led by Inspector Pravesh Kaushik conducted an investigation based on technical surveillance and digital footprints. During the investigation, it was discovered that a portion of the defrauded funds was transferred through UCO Bank and RBL Bank accounts and subsequently deposited into Manish Koshti's HDFC Bank account through payment gateways such as Credit and Razorpay.
Police arrested Manish Koshti during a raid in Ahmedabad. During interrogation, he admitted laundering the defrauded funds through credit card bill payments for a 5 percent commission. Manish also revealed the names of three other accused, leading to the arrests of Mohammad Zaid, Mohammad Ejaz, and Sheikh Abrar.
The gang initially traded in mobile phone purchases and sales, but later opened an office in Ahmedabad to settle fraudulent funds through credit card bill payments, USDT purchases, and other methods. The accused charged a 5 percent commission on each transaction, which was divided among all members. The investigation revealed that more than 163 complaints had been filed against the gang in various states and union territories.