The case came to light following a complaint registered at the Cyber Police Station, North-East district. The accused, identified as Santosh Kumar Gupta (52), a resident of Kharar in Chandigarh, was arrested in connection with an e-FIR registered under Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

According to police, the complainant, Arvind Dhama, was duped by fraudsters who lured him into investing money with promises of high returns. Believing the scheme to be genuine, he transferred Rs 18.39 lakh through four separate transactions. After receiving the money, the fraudsters allegedly stopped all communication, leaving him unable to recover his funds.

During the investigation, police traced Rs 5 lakh of the cheated amount to a bank account belonging to a labourer. The money was allegedly withdrawn on the same day it was deposited, raising suspicions about the use of mule accounts to channel proceeds of cyber fraud.

A dedicated team comprising SI Mohit Kumar, ASI Manoj Kumar, Head Constable Sandeep and Constable Kapil Sharma, under the supervision of Inspector Rahul Kumar, SHO of the Cyber Police Station, conducted extensive technical and financial analysis to identify those involved. The investigation eventually led to the arrest of Gupta.

During interrogation, Gupta allegedly confessed to arranging bank accounts that were used to receive, transfer and withdraw money generated through cyber fraud. He further disclosed that he was in contact with a foreign-based associate who paid him commissions for facilitating accounts used in online scams.

Police recovered an Oppo mobile phone and two SIM cards belonging to Airtel and Jio networks from the accused.

Further investigation is underway to identify other members of the international cyber fraud network and ascertain the full extent of the racket.