Ahmedabad’s cyber crime branch apprehended 13 individuals and dismantled an extortion ring that defrauded a complainant of over ₹1.15 crore, officials said on Apr 15.
According to police, on Mar 20, the criminals, posing as employees of couriers firm FedEx, falsely accused the complainant of shipping illegal items, including MDMA drugs, from Mumbai to Taiwan. They also sent a forged Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) warrant via Skype to the complainant.
“Employing a combination of technical and human intelligence, the cyber crime branch identified and apprehended 13 individuals linked to this scheme. The suspects were located across various cities, including Rajkot, Dhoraji, Kutiana, and Upaleta, where four separate teams conducted coordinated raids,” officials said.
The main suspect, identified as Moin Altaf Nao, was in custody and remanded for six days. Efforts are ongoing to recover the defrauded money. During the operations, 14 mobile phones were seized, instrumental in orchestrating the fraud, they added.
The accused are believed to have conned numerous individuals across different states, showcasing a pattern of widespread criminal activity. Each arrested individual faces severe charges as investigations continue to unearth further details of their operations, officials said.
The main suspect, identified as Moin Altaf Nao, was in custody and remanded for six days. Efforts are ongoing to recover the defrauded money. During the operations, 14 mobile phones were seized, instrumental in orchestrating the fraud, they added.
The accused are believed to have conned numerous individuals across different states, showcasing a pattern of widespread criminal activity. Each arrested individual faces severe charges as investigations continue to unearth further details of their operations, officials said.
The arrested suspects include Mihir Ramnikbhai Topiya, 23, a trader from Dhoraji, Rajkot; Ankit Bhalabhai Desai, 29, a broker from Ahmedabad; Prakril Lovejibhai Valani, 43, wage worker from Dhoraji, Rajkot; Ronak Hareshbhai Sojitra, 23, a student from Rajkot; Kiran Amathabhai Desai, from Ahmedabad; Kisha Polabhai Bharai, 45, involved in animal husbandry from Porbandar; Merubhai Bawanbhai Karamata, 24, an agriculturist from Kutiana, Porbandar; Magirajsinh Divyarajsinh Jadeja, unemployed, from Rajkot; Ravi Savseta, 26, a driver from Rajkot; Rohan Prahaladbhai Leuva, 26, employed, from Ahmedabad; Grahin Jitubhai Wapela, 24, a driver from Dhoraji, Rajkot; Sagar Ramerabhai Dabhi, 31, from Rajkot and Moin Altafbhai Ingaria, 26, a trader from Dhoraji, Rajkot.
China connection of this case
Investigation of the arrested accused makes a revelation of this entire scam extending to Hong Kong and Dubai.
To further intimidate the victims, video calls were made from Skype. For these calls, the scammers had set up a special set in Hong Kong to present their location as the Thane crime branch office.
The office also had an atmosphere of police staff working. In addition, Indian youths were also employed in Hong Kong to avoid any suspicion.
Moin Altaf Nao: The link between Hong Kong and Gujarat
Moin Altaf Nao was in direct contact with the scammers operating from Hong Kong, China. He was responsible for transferring the money into crypto.
He also fixed the commission for the people working for him in Gujarat. Moin had earlier visited Hong Kong and was planning to go to China again in the coming days.
Fraudulent bank accounts to launder money
This scam extended its arms to Dhoraji, where two youths would gain the trust of a needy few, and lure them with the promise of hefty commission to open bank accounts in their names.
Fraudulent money was then transferred online into these accounts. Providing details, Hardik Makadia, superintendent of police (SP) for cyber crime, said that Mehir Topia had recently transferred ₹50 lakh and Ankit Desai had transferred ₹30 lakh.
MICA president a target by the scammers
The scammers had threatened Shailendra Raj Mehta, a president at the MICA Institute of Ahmedabad, of an account in his name used for illegal activities, and a parcel containing drugs.
Mehta received a call on Mar 20 from an unknown number. The caller identified himself as a FedEx employee and asked for the Aadhaar and mobile number from Mehta.
The caller informed Mehta about a courier, to be sent to Taiwan, in his name. Mehta was informed that the courier contained five passports, a laptop, and 200 gm of MD drugs.
The call was then forwarded by the caller to Prakash, who claimed to be an officer with Mumbai Cyber Cell. Prakash told Mehta that a minister named Nawab Malik is in jail for the crime of money laundering and terror funding.
Prakash added that Malik had opened around 300 to 400 bogus bank accounts, one of them belonging to Mehta.
The perpetrators told Mehta that to know more about the account and the transactions which were under the RBI scanner, he had to deposit an amount to a bank account, which would be later returned.
Over this threat, Mehta transferred ₹1 cr to Punjab National Bank’s Quality Food Traders bank account and another amount of ₹15 lakh to other bank accounts.
When the amount was not returned, Mehta realised the scam and filed a complaint.