Seven arrested for involvement in trading and ‘digital arrest’ frauds in Cyberabad

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The cybercrime wing of Cyberabad police arrested seven persons across multiple States in connection with seven cases detected between May 27 and June 2, officials said on Friday.

Of the seven cases detected during the week, three were linked to trading frauds, two to ‘digital arrest’ scams, and two were categorised under operation crackdowns on cyber-enabled financial crimes, said officials.

Cybercrime police also reported that they have processed and secured 304 refund orders in 77 cases from the court, amounting to ₹90,25,688, which will be refunded to victims.

In one of the major cases highlighted this week, officials busted a fake stock trading and IPO investment scam in which a victim was cheated of ₹1.24 crore through a fraudulent online trading platform that displayed fabricated profits and blocked withdrawals.

Investigators said the victim was added to a WhatsApp group titled ‘Market Exchange’, where fraudsters posed as investment advisers and lured him into investing through promises of high returns from stock market trading, IPO allotments and block deals. The victim was initially allowed to withdraw a small amount to build trust, after which he was repeatedly pressured to invest larger sums into multiple bank accounts. When he attempted to withdraw the remaining funds, the accused demanded additional commission payments and falsely showed successful withdrawals on the platform without transferring any money.

In connection with this case, police arrested Abhishek Anand, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, for providing his bank account to cyber fraudsters to receive and route proceeds of crime in exchange for commission.

Police have urged the public to remain cautious of investment offers promising guaranteed returns and to verify the authenticity of trading platforms before transferring money. They advised citizens not to share funds with unknown bank accounts and to report cyber fraud immediately through the national cybercrime portal or helpline 1930 for timely assist