Delhi Police Cyber Cell has arrested 11 folks for duping greater than 5 lakh folks with the assistance of an funding app named Power Bank. In the final two months, the accused allegedly managed to dupe folks Rs 150 crore. The app is listed on Google Play Store and presents engaging and fast return on funding.
DCP (Special Cell-Cyber) Anish Roy stated the app’s proprietor and creator resides in China and had approached the accused two months in the past to assist him with financial institution accounts and shell firms in India.
“We received hundreds of complaints on social media regarding two apps- Power Bank and Easy Plan. Some of the complainants claimed that they had suffered a loss of lakhs of rupees. The power bank app was trending on the App Store with thousands of downloads,” stated DCP Roy.
The data given on the app’s web page means that it’s a Bangalore-based startup, however later the police got here to know that its server is in China. There was no details about its homeowners or creators.
The app initially supplied an immediate return of 5-10% on the quantity invested, which “attracted” many customers who invested within the app. However, the police stated, the app later blocked the customers’ accounts.
The cyber cell’s investigation crew created an account on the app to hint the proprietor.
“Our officer posed as a customer and invested a token amount in the app. We then traced the money trail. It was found that money was being transferred through 25 shell companies and multiple bank accounts. Our team analyzed the mobile numbers linked to the bank accounts and found that one of the accused is in West Bengal,” stated DCP Roy.
Teams had been despatched to Uluberia in Bengal to discover a man named Sheikh Robin. Meanwhile, groups had been despatched to NCR in Delhi to determine and arrest the opposite accused.
Robin was arrested on June 2. At the identical time 9 others had been arrested from Delhi-NCR area. Two of the accused, Avik Kedia and Raunak Bansal, are chartered accountants and greater than 110 shell firms had been shaped for “Chinese fraudsters”. He created these firms for cash switch and later offered every firm to Chinese residents for Rs 2-3 lakh.
During interrogation Robin advised the police that Chinese nationals contacted him on Telegram and requested him to offer a checking account. Later he joined the fraudsters and was ignoring all of the fund transfers on the app. At the time of his arrest, he was working round 29 financial institution accounts.
Police stated the app’s homeowners randomly contacted folks on Telegram, DingTalk and WeChat. They used to ask folks to offer them with a checking account and shell firms to cover their cash transactions. The hyperlink to the app was later forwarded to a number of folks on bulk messages and WhatsApp. The victims had been then supplied schemes on the app with simple returns.
DCP Roy stated that his crew has obtained the names of the homeowners and they’re making an attempt to hint them.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
