Seven Arrested in ₹1.07 Crore Online Trading Scam; Links to China and Cambodia Found

The Navi Mumbai Cyber Police have busted a major online trading scam and arrested seven people accused of cheating investors of over ₹1.07 crore. Police have also frozen 118 bank accounts connected to the racket, spread across multiple states.

According to officials, the fraud took place between September 2 and October 8, when the accused lured victims with fake promises of high profits from share market investments. They used a fraudulent trading app to display inflated virtual profits, convincing victims to invest more money before disappearing with the funds.

An FIR has been registered under Sections 319(2), 318(4), 336(2), 336(3), 340(2), and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Act for cheating and cyber fraud.

The investigation began under the supervision of Police Commissioner Milind Bharambe, Joint Commissioner Sanjay Yenpure, Additional CP (Crime) Deepak Sakore, and DCP (Crime) Sachin Gunjal.

The first arrests were made in Pune — Suresh Talekar (29), a bun-seller from Kharadi, and Vikas Awhad (30) from Haveli. Further leads led to Vishal Vanmane (24) of Kolwadi, who revealed that he was in touch with unidentified persons via Telegram. He was asked to meet three men at a hotel in Mahape, Navi Mumbai, and provide them SIM cards linked to his bank account.

Acting on this clue, police searched over 35 lodges and hotels in Mahape, Sanpada, Koparkhairane, APMC, and Vashi, and finally nabbed five more suspects from a hotel in APMC, Vashi.

Investigations revealed that three of the arrested accused were directly in contact with cyber fraudsters based in China and Cambodia through Telegram. They allegedly used the “Okay Go SMS & Sender” app to forward OTPs from Indian SIM cards connected to multiple current accounts, enabling their foreign handlers to carry out illegal financial transactions.

Police have frozen ₹32.5 lakh across 118 accounts and continue to trace the remaining funds.

“These fraudsters were part of a wider international network using fake trading apps and social media ads to lure investors. Our team worked relentlessly to track their financial trail and dismantle their local operations,” said DCP (Crime) Sachin Gunjal.

The operation was led by ACP (Cyber) Prerna Katte and Senior PI Vishal Patil, with assistance from PI Ganesh Jadhav, PSI Rohit Bandgar, and technical officers Vijay Ayare and Poonam Gadge.

Authorities have urged citizens to stay alert against online investment scams and avoid trusting social media ads promising quick returns. “Always verify the authenticity of trading platforms and never share your personal or banking details with unknown persons,” police warned.