Conman impersonating businessmen to siphon off money nabbed

Rajkot: A 46-year-old resident of Bharuch district, facing at least four offences of cyber fraud by impersonation, was arrested by the Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) from the Gujarat-Maharashtra border.
Acting on specific human intelligence, the team of DCB's Cybercrime unit nabbed Raghuvir Chauhan, a resident of Jhagadiya taluka of Bharuch. Chauhan was wanted for trying to con a prominent submersible pump company owner in Rajkot. The businessman got suspicious when the conman asked him for Rs 1.5 lakh and lodged a complaint.
The investigation revealed that Chauhan used to impersonate the owner of well-known companies and created a fake profile on TrueCaller, which showed him as a leading businessman. For every new fraud, he purchased a new SIM card and created the profile. He then sent out messages to traders, dealers, and people known to the businessmen he impersonated, asking them to urgently give him money. He promised to repay the money within a few days.
"After purchasing a new SIM card, Chauhan filled in the details of the targeted company's MD on TrueCaller, used the MD's photo on WhatsApp profile, and identified himself as the owner. He contacted the company's dealers, asking for money transfers to different accounts," said Dr Parthrajsinh Gohil, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP).
Chauhan faces similar complaints in Ahmedabad DCB police station, Morbi City police station, Sector-1 police station in Gandhinagar, and Jawaharnagar police station in Vadodara.
"He was previously caught committing frauds by posing as an army officer also. Investigations revealed that he was active in states like Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Delhi using the same modus operandi," an official said.
TOI has reliably learnt that he also attempted to defraud a retired IAS officer from Gujarat, who was posted in the PMO and minister Vasan Ahir.