In a significant crackdown, the Cyber Cell of the Crime Branch in Kanpur has arrested eight individuals for allegedly swindling three doctors of a staggering Rs 5.70 crore. The fraud was executed by luring the victims with promises of exceptionally high returns from share market and Initial Public Offering (IPO) investments.
The Elaborate Con and Arrests
The accused connected with three doctors from a reputed pathology lab in Swaroop Nagar, introducing them to a group named 'Launch Club H 49'. Posing as representatives of a SEBI-registered company, they provided investment advice and sent links to download fraudulent trading applications. Trusting the scheme, the doctors transferred a total of Rs 5.70 crore through multiple transactions via these apps.
The breakthrough came when investigators, tracing the calling server and financial trails, identified Nikhil Verma from Lucknow. His interrogation led to the unraveling of the entire network. The first crucial arrest was of the alleged mastermind, Shivam Patel from Civil Lines in Fatehpur, who was caught red-handed during a WhatsApp call with a handler based in Indonesia. The call records obtained by the Cyber Cell were pivotal in his capture.
Seized Evidence and Gang Composition
From the arrested accused, police recovered a trove of evidence including a black Scorpio vehicle, 13 mobile phones, numerous SIM cards, digital documents, banking details, debit cards, QR codes, and cryptocurrency wallet information. Chat records from Telegram and WhatsApp were also seized.
Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ashutosh Kumar revealed that besides mastermind Shivam Patel, Alok Kumar Gupta from Pant Nagar in Gonda was also in direct contact with the Indonesian handler. The other arrested members of the gang are:
- Salman from Naka Hindola, Lucknow
- Ashwani from Ghazipur, Fatehpur
- Shivkumar from Gomti Nagar, Lucknow
- Nikhil Verma from Indira Nagar, Lucknow
- Abhay Mishra alias Nitin from Karnailganj, Gonda
- Yogendra Singh Negi from Atrauli, Lucknow
Notably, four of the accused—Shivam Patel, Abhay Mishra, Shivkumar, and Yogendra Singh Negi—are currently pursuing LLB degrees.
Investigation Insights and Wider Network
After realizing they had been cheated, the victim doctors filed a formal First Information Report (FIR) at the Crime Branch police station. Inspector Satish Chandra Yadav of the Cyber Crime police station stated that following the incident, police successfully froze Rs 55 lakh of the defrauded amount.
Inspector Yadav further warned that other individuals are involved with this gang, and similar networks are actively operating. These gangs hatch conspiracies to cheat investors with false promises, and their network is spread across Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, the National Capital Region (NCR), Haryana, and other districts. The case underscores a growing trend of sophisticated cyber financial frauds targeting professionals with promises of lucrative, low-risk investments.
