The Delhi Police has busted a cyber fraud syndicate operating through a fraudulent stock trading application and apprehended two men from Haryana for allegedly cheating a woman of Rs 22.7 lakh, officials said on Tuesday.
The probe began following a complaint lodged by Dr Amita Garg on November 13. The complainant alleged that she was added to a messaging app group 'Stan Chart Dialogue Forum L7', where administrators shared advice on D-mat share investments.
DCP (Shahdara) Prashant Gautam said one of the group admins, identifying herself as Yalini Guna, persuaded the victim to invest via a mobile application and shared a download link.
The complainant, initially, invested around Rs 2.7 lakh through multiple transactions. While the application displayed apparent profits, the victim was pressured to invest further sums when she attempted to withdraw her money. In total, she transferred Rs 22.70 lakh before being blocked from the app, police said.
An e-FIR was filed under sections 318(4) (cheating) and 340 (forged document or electronic record and using it as genuine) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
During the investigation, police traced the money trail through the NCRP portal and identified a bank account belonging to Sameer, a resident of Hisar. Analysis of call detail records further linked other suspect numbers to the crime, he said.
On November 10, the police team conducted raids in Hisar and apprehended Sameer (22) and Dev Singh (22). During interrogation, Sameer admitted to opening five to six bank accounts and handing them over to Dev Singh for a payment of Rs 4,000 per account, the officials said.
Two mobile phones and three SIM cards were seized from them. Both men have been produced before a court and sent to judicial custody, they added.
Police said the accused followed a standard modus operandi of contacting victims on social media with promises of high returns. Fraudsters build trust by showing fake profits before siphoning off larger investments.
Further investigation is underway to identify other members of the syndicate and trace the remaining proceeds of crime, they said.