Navi Mumbai police bust fake call centre, suspects defrauding of over Rs 1 crore; two held

Navi Mumbai cyber police raid Mahape call centre. Representational Pic

The Navi Mumbai police have busted a fake call centre in Mahape located in the northern part of Navi Mumbai that allegedly cheated people of more than Rs 1 crore by promising high returns through share market trading.

Two people have been arrested in connection with the scam, officials said on Sunday. The raid was conducted on March 12 by the police's financial intelligence and cyber units, following a tip-off.

How the call centre operated

During the raid, police found 22 young men and women working at the fake call centre premises. They were communicating with potential victims via WhatsApp chats and phone calls using computers, the police said. The call centre was operating under the name of a share market research company.

Its staff contacted individuals, claiming they could provide investment opportunities in intraday and equity stock trading while promises of attractive high profits.

Chats recovered from the computers revealed that victims were promised higher returns if they invested in the stock market through the company. The victims were asked to transfer money to bank accounts shared by the call centre operators.

Preliminary investigations suggested that the call centre had defrauded people of at least Rs 1.02 crore by sending payment links and directing victims to transfer funds to the company's account as well as 18 other bank accounts as per PTI reports.

Cyber complaints and Arrests

Police checked the accounts linked to the call centre on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and found that at least five cyber fraud complaints from across India were connected to the accounts.

Two people have been arrested in connection with the case neamely Shivam Vinodkumar Dubey (29) and Sujit Masicharan Warimiki (30). They are both residents of Thane district. Their exact role in the call centre has not been specified. Another accused is currently absconding, and the police is making efforts to trace him.

A case has been registered at the Cyber Police Station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the police said. Investigations are ongoing to identify any further links and prevent similar scams in the future.

The crackdown highlights the police's commitment to tackling such scams and safeguarding the public from fraudulent schemes.

(With PTI Inputs)