Gujarat: Three Uttarakhand men held over Rs 1.63 crore fake gold investment scam

Surat, July 20 (SocialNews.XYZ) Three men from Uttarakhand have been arrested for allegedly facilitating a cyber fraud in which a Surat resident was duped of more than Rs 1.63 crore through a fake gold mining investment scheme, with investigators alleging that the accused provided bank accounts used to route the proceeds of the crime.

According to the Surat City Cyber Crime Cell, the fraud took place between December 10, 2024, and April 25, 2025.

The complainant was allegedly contacted through a Facebook profile named "Anjali Modi" and a WhatsApp handle, a purported investment scheme called GRGC (Gold Rush Global Capital), a fake trading application, and the email address "info@grglobalco.com".

The fraudsters allegedly induced the victim to invest in "Gold Mining Trading" by promising high daily and monthly returns.

"The accused gained the complainant's confidence before collecting money under various pretexts, including initial investment, tax, margin money, credit score charges, audit fees, international transfer fees, high-risk deposits and withdrawal charges," officials said.

A total of Rs 1,63,98,012.70 was transferred into different bank accounts.

The complainant was allegedly shown fictitious profits on the fake trading application and repeatedly assured that the invested amount was secure and would soon be refunded, but "no money was returned".

After the victim lodged a complaint with the National Cyber Crime Helpline, the Cyber Crime Cell conducted a preliminary inquiry.

Finding prima facie evidence, the Cyber Crime Police Station registered an FIR under Sections 318(4), 336(2), 338, 336(3), 340(2), 61(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Act, 2008.

A team led by Police Inspector N.R. Patel and Police Sub-Inspector V.B. Prajapati used technical analysis to trace the suspects to Kashipur, Uttarakhand, where they were arrested.

Police identified the first accused as Mohammad Izhar, 48, a businessman from Kashipur in Udham Singh Nagar district.

Investigators alleged that he handed over his HDFC Bank account and banking kit to the co-accused in return for a commission of Rs 8,500, enabling cyber fraud transactions.

The second accused, Mohammad Sumair, 24, also a businessman from Kashipur, allegedly arranged his own bank account as well as those of other individuals for use in the fraud after coming into contact with co-accused Mohammad Uvesh.

Police alleged that he retained Rs 6,500 as commission for each bank account while passing on the remaining commission to the respective account holders.

The third accused, Mohammad Uvesh, 24, an electrician from Kashipur, allegedly collected his own bank account and those of six other individuals after being promised Rs 20,000 per account.

According to investigators, he kept Rs 5,000 per account as commission and paid the remainder to the account holders while making the accounts available for cyber fraud transactions.

During the investigation, police found that one of the HDFC Bank accounts allegedly used in the case had been linked to three separate complaints registered on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCCRP), involving transactions totalling Rs 11,37,217.

Of that amount, Rs 9,95,000 was allegedly withdrawn through ATMs in the Kashipur area of Udham Singh Nagar district.

The Cyber Crime Cell urged the public not to share bank account details, ATM cards, UPI PINs, net banking passwords or one-time passwords with anyone.

It also warned against allowing others to use personal bank accounts, ATM cards, cheque books, passbooks, SIM cards or internet banking facilities in exchange for commissions, rent or any other inducement.

Source: IANS