Delhi Police bust interstate cheating syndicate, two held

New Delhi: The Delhi Police have busted an interstate cheating syndicate with the arrest of two of its key members, said the police on Wednesday.

According to the police, 40 SIM cards and one ATM card were recovered from their possession.

The accused, identified as Sonam and Juned Akhtar, are residents of Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, respectively.

"The accused, Sonam and Juned Akhtar used to dupe people on the pretext of sending them links on their mobile numbers for shopping at various online platforms. Thereafter, they would get access to their phones and steal the One-time-Password (OTP)", said the police.

Further, the police said that the incident came to light when a complaint was registered at the special cell of the Delhi police.

"The complainant alleged that he was scrolling Facebook when he saw an advertisement regarding a lucrative offer available on BigBasket (an online grocery shopping platform). As he clicked on the tab showing 'shop now', Rs 98,000 immediately got deducted from his credit card", said the police.
Meanwhile, a case was registered into the matter at the special cell under the various sections of law, it added.

As per the police, an exercise of identifying the "money trail", and digital footprints was undertaken.
It was revealed that the syndicate operates in many states. Also, the financial analysis of the syndicate revealed that there was a transaction worth over Rs 30 lakh and that over 15 victims were duped by the gang.

During technical analysis, it was noticed that the accused persons had used fake SIM cards for tele-calling and fake accounts for receiving money, added the police.
During technical analysis, it was noticed that the accused persons had used fake SIM cards for tele-calling and fake accounts for receiving money.
Further, on the basis of technical and manual surveillance, the accused were arrested in the case on October 5, 2023, said the police.

"Both of the accused confessed their involvement in the crime. They further disclosed that they operate in tiers and usually do not meet with other members of the syndicate. They procure fake SIM cards to communicate and for tele-calling, and fake accounts for receiving money and further rotation of money. They had duped many people so far and cheated to the tune of more than Rs 25-30 lakh. So far, 15 complainants have been identified and linked with the alleged accused persons and accounts", the police added.
Meanwhile, a probe is underway.