Punjab Police bust ₹8-crore inter-state investment fraud syndicate, 2 arrested

In line with Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann’s vision of ensuring a safe and secure Punjab, the State Cyber Crime Division of Punjab Police has busted a major inter-state gang involved in an ₹8-crore investment fraud, with the arrest of two individuals from Panchkula and Abohar, Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav announced on Tuesday.

The gang operated by luring unsuspecting victims into fake stock market investment schemes through Telegram and WhatsApp groups. Victims were persuaded to install a counterfeit APK application that falsely displayed high profits. Encouraged by the apparent returns, victims continued to invest large sums into bank accounts as instructed by the fraudsters.

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The arrested individuals have been identified as Varun Kumar, apprehended from Panchkula, and Sahil Sethi, arrested in Abohar. Investigations revealed that Varun Kumar had rented his bank account to Sahil Sethi on a commission basis. Sethi then sourced multiple mule accounts for cyber fraud activities, delivering them to various locations in the Delhi-NCR region under instructions from unidentified kingpins using virtual mobile numbers.

DGP Gaurav Yadav stated that the fraudsters received commissions based on the amounts siphoned into these mule accounts. “Preliminary investigations indicate that the arrested accused are linked to at least 34 cyber fraud cases across 14 states, involving total scams worth over ₹8 crore,” he said, adding that efforts are underway to trace the kingpins and their network operating via virtual numbers.

Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Cyber Crime, V Neeraja said the breakthrough came following a complaint from a victim who was duped of ₹15 lakh. A cyber-crime team, led by Inspector Jujhar Singh, conducted a comprehensive investigation using advanced OSINT techniques and technical support from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre’s (I4C) Samanvay portal, which led to the identification and arrest of the accused.

The ADGP added that further investigation is underway into the use of virtual mobile numbers and the delivery of fake bank accounts in the Delhi-NCR region. “These arrests have exposed a deep-rooted cyber fraud network operating across multiple states,” she said. An FIR (No. 04 dated 8-5-2025) has been registered under Sections 318(4) and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and Sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the Information Technology Act, at the State Cyber Crime Police Station, Punjab.