The Delhi police have detained about five people in connection with a crypto investment scam that has stolen more than Rs. 24 crore (approximately $2.6 million) from victims. According to the police, they stumbled on the cybercrime network while investigating another case tied to the same group.
According to Delhi police, they were investigating the case of a man who lost Rs. 30 lakh to criminals who pretended to be investment experts.
The police claimed that the criminals ran their operations out of a WhatsApp group, meeting their victims across social media and directing them to the group. They also ran a bogus trading application where they entrap their victims to register and deposit funds, which they later steal after extorting the victims serially.
Delhi police arrest five in connection with a crypto investment fraud
The Delhi police claimed that their investigations revealed several money trails, with the criminals moving the funds using different mule accounts. The police claimed that they had already carried out searches at two sites of operations, busting two investment rackets and arresting four suspects.
The four suspects are Rajiv, Mohit, Rajbir Singh, and Monu Kumar. The four suspects were said to be in charge of sourcing and providing mule accounts that the criminals used.
The criminals were accused of convincing their victims to install applications that they knew were fake, promising them high returns when they invested in the said application.
“The investigation has revealed a well-organised network of cyber fraudsters operating across several states and using fake investment/stock trading WhatsApp groups, bogus mobile applications, and layered mule bank accounts opened through local agents on commission,” DCP (Crime Branch) Aditya Gautam said.
The Delhi police officials mentioned that in the first case, the complainant was scammed of Rs. 31.45 lakh after being lured into a WhatsApp group. After joining the group, he claimed that the suspects asked him to install an application called “Cventura” on his mobile phone. He was asked to make investments, to which he transferred the funds in six different transactions.
After he demanded his profits, the group disappeared, and the application became non-functional.
Police step up investigations
The case, like many others, was registered and transferred to the Delhi Crime Branch. During the investigation, the stolen funds were discovered to have been routed through several accounts and sent to a digital asset wallet.
The police also carried out additional raids in Ludhiana and Khanna in Punjab. Gautam claimed that Rajiv was a mule accounts holder who had about Rs. 6.45 lakh from the crime in his account. The police also detected a transaction of Rs. 1 crore in his account before he deactivated it.
Meanwhile, the Delhi police claimed Monu acted as a facilitator, luring people to open bank accounts and sell them to the fraudsters for commission.
In the second case, the complainant joined a WhatsApp group named “VIP 10 Stock Sharing Group” in July and was encouraged to invest through an application called “Verger.” The victim transferred Rs. 47.15 lakh through several transactions to nine different bank accounts before the group and app were eventually shut down.
On the other hand, Mohit was arrested after a raid and is accused of allegedly opening a bank account in his wife’s name and handing it over to his associate. “Transactions of around Rs 3 crore were conducted through his account within 12 days,” Gautam said.
Further investigations led police to arrest Churu from Rajasthan, who arranged accounts on commission, and Rajbir Singh, who used his account to carry out transactions of about Rs. 20 crore within three days. The police also seized several incriminating pieces of evidence, and efforts are underway to trace beneficiaries and identify more victims.
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