Online investment racketeers arrested

Vadodara: The cybercrime sleuths have unearthed a countrywide racket wherein a gang used to dupe businessmen of crores of rupees by offering lucrative returns on their investments. Two men were arrested from Goa while the other gang members located in different states are yet to be traced.
The cops swung into action after Dhruv Shah, a city-based businessman, filed a complaint of cheating worth Rs 2 crore at cybercrime police station about two weeks ago. Shah told the cops that he had read an online advertisement wherein the investors were promised high returns on their investment. The gang offered help to invest money in bitcoins and the stock market too.
“Shah invested a good amount and initially he got very high returns. So, he encouraged his family and friends to invest in the scheme too,” said Hardik Makadia, ACP (cybercrime). Shah invested Rs 4 crore out of which he got Rs 1.96 crore back but the gang duped him of the rest of the money. “We first nabbed Ramjash Mittal from Delhi and questioned him. He used to travel to different states and form bogus companies. Mittal revealed about their modus operandi and other gang members,” Makadia told TOI. The cops froze nine bank accounts of the gang and have seized Rs 1.23 crore deposited in these accounts. Two other accused were also nabbed from Goa on Thursday. “One of these accused, Vikram Singh Jaat used to make phone calls and communicate with the investors while the other accused Hansraj Raiya used to handle the bank accounts,” Makadia added.
Investigating officials said that the gang had employed dozens of persons who were not aware of the fraud that was being committed. The police suspect that some persons from abroad too are involved in the racket and the gang seems to have earned crores of rupees.