Hyderabad: Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police have successfully apprehended nine individuals involved in a massive investment fraud amounting to Rs 720 crore across Mumbai, Ahmedabad, and Hyderabad.
On credible information, the Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police arrested Prakash Mulchandbhai Prajapati, Kumar Prajapati, Naimuddin Wahiduddin Shaik, Gagan Kumar Soni, Parveez alias Guddu, Shameer Khan, Mohammed Munawar, Shah Sumair, and Arul Dass for their involvement in the crime, Hyderabad City Police Commissioner C V Anand told media persons here on Saturday.
The arrests were made following a complaint filed by a resident of Chikkadpally, which led to the registration of Case No. 598/2023.
The complainant had been offered a part-time job of “Rate and Review” through the Telegram app, which he believed to be a legitimate opportunity.
He registered on their website, https://www.traveling-boost-99.com, and initially received small profits by giving 5-star ratings to a set of 5 tasks after investing Rs 1000.
Anand explained that the fraudsters created a deceptive system, displaying the complainant’s invested amount in an online wallet, offering options for further investments, withdrawals, and task completion. As the complainant invested larger sums, he was denied the ability to withdraw profits, and the scammers demanded additional money as a withdrawal fee.
As a result, the complainant incurred a loss of Rs 28 lakh due to the fraud.
During investigations, it was discovered that the fraudulently obtained funds had been transferred to six accounts, including one under the name of Radhika Marketing. The funds were subsequently moved to various other Indian bank accounts before reaching Dubai, where they were used to purchase cryptocurrency.
Further inquiries revealed that the Radhika Marketing account was linked to a mobile number 8948013209, belonging to Mohd Munawar. Collaborating with Arul Dass, Shah Sumair, and Shameer Khan, they opened bank accounts on behalf of shell companies, which were later sold to Kumar Prajapathi, an associate of Prakash Prajapathi.
Kumar coordinated fraudulent transactions with Chinese nationals.
Prakash Prajapathi, based in Ahmedabad, had connections with Chinese nationals Lee Lou Guangzhou, Nan Ye, Kevin Jun, and others, who masterminded the task-based investment frauds.
The victims were lured through Telegram messages, and the Chinese collaborators, along with Prakash Prajapathi, funneled the defrauded money into primary shell/mule bank accounts, eventually reaching Chinese accounts. Prakash Prajapathi received a 2-3 per cent commission for each fraudulent transaction and used hawala channels to distribute a portion of his earnings.
The police have frozen an amount of Rs. 10,53,89,943 in the accounts related to the fraud and have received 745 complaints across the country regarding the activities of the fraudsters, as confirmed by the Police Commissioner.
Anand strongly cautioned the public to steer clear of task-based investment offers on social media platforms and unauthorized websites that promise high returns for small investments, as they often lead to fraudulent schemes.
