MP: Inter-state illegal investment fraud call centre busted, 6 held

New Delhi, Aug 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) The Cyber Police Station of Dwarka District has busted an inter-state illegal investment fraud call centre operating from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, and arrested six alleged cyber fraudsters involved in duping investors through fake stock market and forex trading schemes.

Police said the call centre was being run under the guise of a reputed investment and trading company and was linked to multiple cyber fraud complaints across several states. During the operation, investigators seized 28 CPUs, 25 mobile phones, two Wi-Fi routers, one DVR, and an audio-cum-video recording camera. More than 1,400 spreadsheets containing the personal and financial details of thousands of investors were also recovered.

The action was taken during the investigation of a cyber fraud case in which a Delhi resident was allegedly cheated of Rs 17.30 lakh on the pretext of investing in stock and forex markets.

According to police, complainant Sunil Kumar, a resident of Uttam Nagar, Delhi, filed a complaint on July 5, 2026, alleging that unknown persons persuaded him to invest through an online trading platform. Initially, he was encouraged to trade in the Indian stock market to gain confidence, after which he was induced to invest in forex trading. He was shown fabricated profits and repeatedly asked to deposit more money.

When he attempted to withdraw his investment and the purported profits, the accused allegedly cited false reasons and later showed trading losses, resulting in a loss of Rs 17,30,050. The victim had been investing money since March 30, 2026, before realising he had been defrauded.

Following the complaint, an FIR (No. 29/2026) was registered under Sections 318(4), 319 and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Cyber Police Station, Dwarka District.

Acting on the directions of DCP Dwarka Kushal Pal Singh and Additional DCP Vikas Meena, the Cyber Police team launched a detailed technical investigation. Analysis of the mobile numbers used to contact the complainant led investigators to Indore.

A special team comprising SI Tejsingh Rathee, SI Kailash, HC Manoj Kumar, HC Jagan Lal and HC Parmod, led by Inspector Mukesh Kumar under the supervision of SHO Cyber Inspector Sandeep Tushir and ACP Operations Subhash Malik, conducted a raid at a market near Mari Mata Chowk under the Sadar Bazar police station area of Indore.

During the raid, police apprehended six accused allegedly engaged in making fraudulent investment calls. They were produced before a local court in Indore and subsequently brought to Delhi.

The arrested accused have been identified as Sumit Singh Choudhary (23), Rahul Singh (32), Ashwini Kumar (35), Mahesh Singh (32), Piyush Rathore (27) and Ravinder Singh Chauhan (24), all residents of Indore. Investigators said the accused were working as callers and team leaders in the fraudulent operation. Mobile phones allegedly used in the commission of the crime were recovered from their possession.

Police investigations revealed that the syndicate obtained data of individuals already investing in the stock market through illegal sources. The callers would first convince victims to invest in the Indian stock market before luring them to a fake international forex trading platform. Victims were instructed to transfer money into private bank accounts and were shown dummy profits to encourage further investments.

Once investors sought to withdraw their funds, the accused allegedly delayed payments through false assurances and eventually showed fabricated losses, causing victims to lose their entire investments.

During interrogation, the accused disclosed that they had been working at the illegal call centre for the last two to four months. They reportedly received monthly salaries ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 14,500, along with commissions of around 10 per cent of the amount fraudulently collected from victims. Both salaries and commissions were allegedly paid in cash.

Among the seized items were 25 mobile phones, including three directly linked to the numbers used to contact the complainant. The 28 CPUs contained more than 1,400 Excel sheets storing sensitive information such as names, PAN details, mobile numbers, email addresses and bank account information of thousands of individuals.

Police said analysis of the recovered data has so far revealed links to cyber fraud complaints registered on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP), involving losses exceeding Rs 54.70 lakh. Victims from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Bihar and several other states have been identified.

Source: IANS