Fake online trading syndicate busted, 4 held from Kolkata, Lucknow: Delhi Police

New Delhi, Jan 24 (PTI) The Delhi Police has busted a fake-online-trading racket with alleged links to Cambodia-based operators and unearthed a fraud network that has siphoned off more than Rs 300 crore from victims across the country, officials said on Saturday.

Four key accused have been apprehended from Kolkata and Lucknow in connection with the racket.

Police dismantled a sophisticated syndicate that lured people with promises of high returns through fake trading applications and online messaging groups, masking as legitimate brokerage firms.

According to police, the fraudsters contacted potential victims through advertisements and messages on social media, offering “online trading investments” and “guaranteed” profits.

“Those who responded

were added to groups with misleading names, such as Ventura Securities, Go Market Global and IPO Stock Trading, falsely projecting themselves as authorised brokers,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Aditya Gautam said.

The victims were then persuaded to download fraudulent mobile applications that displayed rigged trading dashboards showing fabricated profits. To build trust, the accused initially credited small amounts as “returns” to the accounts of the victims, prompting the latter to invest larger sums subsequently. Later, the fraudsters demanded additional payments under the pretext of taxes, fees or activation charges for withdrawals, after which the victims lost their money, police said.

Investigators said the network operated through a vast web of mule bank accounts arranged by Indian handlers. Bank account details — including account numbers, IFSC codes, registered mobile numbers and customer IDs — were shared with the scammers. The SIM cards linked to these accounts were kept active and fitted with applications that auto-shared transaction OTPs, enabling seamless diversion of funds.

The police team analysed data from the I4C platform and tracked money trails and KYC records from more than 200 bank branches. They uncovered a Kolkata-based syndicate that had floated shell companies and supplied fraudulent bank accounts.

Biswajit Mondal (32), a resident of Kolkata, was arrested from Belgharia in Barrackpore on December 29, 2025, and incriminating documents were seized from him, police said. His interrogation led to the arrest of Ashish Aggarwal (35) from a Kolkata hotel on January 1. Mobile phones and a laptop containing digital evidence were seized from his possession.

Further disclosures led to the arrest of Rajib Shah from Lucknow on January 6 and Shubham Sharma from Kolkata in a coordinated raid. Police have seized mobile phones, laptops, chequebooks, ATM cards and SIM cards from them.

During interrogation, Shah allegedly linked the fraud to operators based in Cambodia who handled cryptocurrency transactions and named associates in eastern Uttar Pradesh, Kolkata and Bihar.

Police said the accused were involved in opening fake companies and bank accounts, supplying ATM cards, chequebooks and SIM cards to cybercrime syndicates, and routing proceeds through RTGS transfers and cash deposits.

So far, 39 mobile phones, 258 SIM cards, four laptops, ATM cards, chequebooks, banking and KYC documents have been seized, and an amount of Rs 19 lakh has been frozen. The investigators have identified more than 260 bank accounts linked to 105 fictitious companies and connected the network to 2,567 complaints on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP).

Further investigation is underway to trace the other members of the racket and its international links, police added. PTI SSJ RC