Delhi Police Uncover Fraud Gang, Arrest Two and Seize Assets Worth ₹2.5 Crore

New Delhi, October 29 (Daily Kiran) : Authorities in New Delhi have arrested two individuals linked to a fraudulent scheme targeting bank account holders. The arrests were made by the Delhi Police, who uncovered the operation that defrauded bank officials of ₹22.56 lakh through fake “Real-Time Gross Settlement” (RTGS) instructions.

In conjunction with the arrests, police seized assets worth approximately ₹2.5 crore, which included gold jewelry, 101 gold coins, cash, and an SUV. One of the arrested individuals is a declared criminal who had been evading law enforcement for over seven years in connection with a counterfeit currency case.

The scheme was associated with a branch of the Bank of India located in Rajendra Place. A complaint was lodged by the branch manager, who reported that on August 5, an individual posing as Deepak Malhotra contacted bank officials. Malhotra is known as a director of several companies with accounts at that branch.

To gain the trust of bank officials, the suspect initially proposed creating a ₹1 crore Fixed Deposit Receipt (FDR). Subsequently, he reached out again, claiming that the company needed to make a payment but had run out of checks. He requested that the transaction be completed via email.

Using an email address similar to the registered one of the company, the suspect sent a fraudulent payment request. The email featured a forged company letterhead and instructed the bank to transfer ₹22,56,922 to another account.

When bank officials asked for necessary indemnity documents, the caller pressured them by stating that similar transactions had been completed previously and that the payment was urgent. The bank eventually processed the fraudulent RTGS transfer.

Following the complaint, police registered a case and initiated an investigation. They discovered that the swindled funds had been transferred to a “mule” account at a bank in West Bengal. Technical analysis of telecom records and digital evidence helped investigators identify the suspects, leading to their arrest.

The individuals have been identified as 36-year-old Vinay Kumar Yadav from Ghaziabad and 65-year-old Anil Kumar Sehgal from Noida. The investigation revealed that the suspects employed fake company letterheads, deceptive email IDs, social engineering tactics, and mule accounts to target corporate bank transactions. The illicit funds were then invested in various assets, including gold purchased from a jeweler in West Bengal.

Police reported that both suspects have a history of involvement in financial fraud cases across multiple locations, including Ghaziabad, Saharanpur, Ayodhya, and Faridabad. Their acquaintance reportedly formed while they were incarcerated. Previously, they had also been implicated in check fraud using “magic pens.”

These arrests have aided police in resolving six other cases of fraud reported in Gurugram, Palwal, and Delhi, involving amounts ranging from ₹16.65 lakh to ₹2.98 crore, along with an attempted fraud of ₹88 lakh.