The Cyber-crime Branch Bhopal has arrested five individuals from Cooch Behar, West Bengal, and Maharashtra for their involvement in a large-scale stock market investment scam. The accused provided fake bank accounts to a cyber fraud gang that duped victims with false promises of high returns.
According to officials, the fraudsters targeted people by adding them to WhatsApp groups and sending messages promoting stock market investments. They initially returned small amounts to gain trust, encouraging victims to invest more. Once significant sums were deposited, the victims were blocked, and their money was siphoned off.
The case came to light after a complaint was filed by a Bhopal resident, who lost ?1.22 crore between May and July 2024. The victim was approached by a woman named Casey Aylward through WhatsApp, who convinced him to invest via a fraudulent trading app. He was given a username and password and instructed to deposit money into specific bank accounts. When he tried to withdraw his supposed profits, he was asked to pay a 20% tax. Realizing he had been cheated, he reported the fraud.
Following a technical investigation, police identified the accused as Mustafa Musharraf Hussain, Nihar Alam, and Ashiful Haq from Cooch Behar, along with Tamas Ganesh Shedmake and Pintu Suresh Singh Bais from Maharashtra. The arrested individuals were responsible for opening and selling fake bank accounts, transferring defrauded funds, and laundering money for cybercriminals. Each fake bank account was sold for ?50,000, and the accused earned commissions on transactions.
During the arrests, police seized six mobile phones, 19 SIM cards, 12 ATM cards, two cheque books, a bank passbook, and other incriminating documents. The Cyber-crime Branch has urged the public to report any incidents of online fraud to the Bhopal Cyber-crime Helpline (9479990636) or the National Helpline (1930).
