The investigation revealed a meticulously planned “modus operandi” designed to exploit the trust of unsuspecting individuals.
The Ahmedabad City Cyber Crime Branch has dismantled a sophisticated interstate fraud syndicate operating out of Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, specialising in high-value insurance scams. The operation led to the arrest of two key suspects who impersonated as senior officials from the Ministry of Finance and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to defraud a citizen of approximately Rs 47 lakhs.
The investigation revealed a meticulously planned “modus operandi” designed to exploit the trust of unsuspecting individuals. The suspects, identified as 32-year-old Sumitkumar Koli and 27-year-old Ashu Agrawal, targeted the victim by claiming that a significant sum of Rs 10 lakh from a previous LIC policy was pending in a government fund.
To execute the crime, the gang members assumed multiple high-ranking personas, including “Jitendra Goswami” (Senior NPCI Officer) and “Mitesh kumar” (Ministry of Finance official). They further solidified their credibility by sending forged identification cards and official-looking documents via WhatsApp, featuring government logos and technical jargon, officials said.
The fraud was executed in several calculated stages. Initially, the suspects convinced the victim to pay “processing fees,” “stamp duties,” and “GST” to release the supposed insurance funds. In a more intrusive phase of the scam, the fraudsters coerced the victim into opening new bank accounts at ICICI and HDFC banks and purchasing a new SIM card, they said.
The officials added this card was then couriered to a location in Delhi, effectively handing the criminals full control over the victim’s mobile-linked banking transactions. “By receiving OTPs directly on their own devices, the suspects were able to siphon off funds and apply for illegal transfers of over Rs 47 lakhs, promising the victim a total return of over Rs 1.48 crore”.
The arrests were made following a coordinated effort by a team led by ACP H.S. Makadia and PI M.H. Bhetariya, who utilised technical surveillance and human intelligence to track the suspects to Modinagar, Ghaziabad.
They said Sumit kumar Koli, a former telecaller with extensive experience in Noida-based call centers, allegedly utilised his professional communication skills to manipulate victims. “His associate, Ashu Agrawal, utilised his background as a SIM card distributor to supply the illegal communication channels used in the crime, often charging ten times the market rate for “clean” SIM cards issued under others’ names”.
Following the successful bust, the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch has issued a critical public advisory, warning citizens to be skeptical of any calls promising high returns on old insurance policies or maturity bonuses.
The police emphasised that government officials would never request payments for taxes or fees via personal bank transfers or demand the couriering of SIM cards.
