In a joint operation by the Phase-3 police station and the cyber cell, ten individuals involved in a cyber fraud racket were arrested from Sector 121 in Noida on Thursday. The group allegedly duped people by offering fake lottery prizes through social media platforms.
Recovered Items and Accused
Police recovered 20 mobile phones, four debit cards, and Rs 10,200 in cash used in the fraudulent activities. The accused have been identified as Alan Antony (27), Ankit Kumar (18), Rahul (18), Shakeel (29), Chetan (21), Rajashekhar (29), Guru Prasad (22), Vinay DP (28), Vinod Kumar (33), and Santosh (24).
Modus Operandi
Central Noida ADCP Swatantra Kumar Singh stated that the gang had been operating for nearly two months. The case came under scrutiny after multiple complaints were received through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and the Samanvaya portal. Approximately 18 complaints linked to the racket were registered in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
The racket initially circulated advertisements claiming that users had won lucrative lottery prizes. Interested individuals were then contacted by phone and persuaded to purchase fake lottery tickets for as little as Rs 50. Subsequently, victims were informed that they had won a lottery worth Rs 12 lakh and were asked to send money under various pretexts, including TDS, GST, NOC charges, income tax clearance, RBI clearance, and final transfer fees. These payments were made into bank accounts allegedly opened using forged documents.
The group primarily targeted people from southern states and communicated in local languages to gain trust. To make the scheme appear genuine, they shared fake certificates and documents bearing the names of the Income Tax Department and the Reserve Bank of India with the victims through WhatsApp. The gang frequently changed and destroyed SIM cards and bank accounts to evade detection.
Legal Action and Investigation
A case has been registered under sections 318(4) (cheating), 338, 336(3), and 340(2) (all related to forgery) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 66D of the Information Technology Act at the Phase-3 police station.
Police are examining the criminal history of the arrested men and tracing the money trail to identify others who were cheated. They suspect the involvement of additional individuals who supplied fake bank accounts and SIM cards to the gang.
