Hyderabad city police have alerted other states about the arrest of a gang involved in a Rs. 712 crore investment fraud and suspected terror links. The cybercrime police have arrested nine individuals, some of whom have connections to individuals in Dubai and China believed to be the masterminds behind the fraud.
The arrested individuals are Prakash Mulchandbhai Prajapati, Kumar Prajapati, Naimuddin Wahiuddin Shaik, Gagan Kumar Soni, Parveez alias Guddu, Shameer Khan, Mohammed Munawar, Shah Sumair, and Arul Dass. The gang operated through messaging apps like WhatsApp and Telegram, randomly sending messages to people promising high profits on investments. Once a person registered with the fake company, they were tricked into transferring money to various bank accounts controlled by the fraudsters.
During the investigation, it was discovered that the gang had defrauded around 745 individuals across the country, who had reported their complaints to the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal. Cases have been registered in multiple states including Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh. The police are sharing information about the gang’s arrest with other police departments to gather more information about their criminal activities and potential links to terrorist groups.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has requested details about the case from the Hyderabad police. The Hyderabad cybercrime police found that some of the applications used for converting the fraudulently obtained money into cryptocurrency were also used by a terrorist organization called Hezbollah.
Officials from the Enforcement Directorate have also met with Hyderabad police officials to gather information about the case. During their investigation, the police discovered that the fraudulently collected money had been funneled to Dubai through 66 bank accounts, resulting in the transfer of hundreds of crores of rupees.
