Three arrested in Mumbai after retiree loses Rs 7 crore in fake trading scam
The South Cybercrime Branch police arrested three men in connection with a cyber fraud case where a 59-year-old retiree from South Mumbai was swindled of nearly Rs 7 crore. The suspects, who reside in Kandivli (West) and Jogeshwari, allegedly helped facilitate the online share trading scam by setting up a corporate account in Borivli.
The victim was lured into the scheme with promises of high returns in the stock market. While making the transactions, the victim saw his investment and purported profits displayed as touching Rs 149 crore on a fraudulent website run by the accused. In total, the complainant transferred Rs 6.81 crore across 48 separate transactions between April 11 and May 27.
The arrested individuals were identified as Dayanand Suresh Kolekar, 31, and Sukrut Bhosale, 33, both residents of Bandar Pakhadi in Kandivli (West), and Dhanajay Sagvekar, 36, a resident of Jogeshwari. Bhosale allegedly assisted Kolekar and Sagvekar in opening companies used to channel the stolen funds.
According to the police, the victim was induced to transfer Rs 35 lakh and Rs 15 lakh from his private bank accounts to an account registered under M/s Aluvanta Traders Pvt Ltd in Borivli. Kolekar and Sagvekar were listed as directors of this company. Another Rs 26 lakh was transferred to a second account registered to the same firm. In total, the accounts linked to the arrested suspects received Rs 76 lakh of the victim's money.
When cyber police officers raided the company's registered address in Borivli, they found the office locked. Investigators learned that the primary operators running the scam had fled to Rajasthan. Police noted that there are currently about 15 cases registered against the wanted suspects who remain at large.
An FIR was registered on May 28 against 10 individuals, invoking charges of cheating and forgery under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), alongside identity theft under the Information Technology (IT) Act. The ongoing investigation is being led by Senior Inspector Nandkumar Gopale, Police Inspector Suresh Bhoye, and Assistant Police Inspector Deepak Desle.