Mewat-based cyber fraud racket busted, four held for posing as IAF officials: Delhi Police

The accused allegedly posed as senior officials of the Army and the Indian Air Force and sent forged purchase orders to gain the victims trust, Deputy Commissioner of Police Crime Branch Aditya Gautam said in the statement.

The Delhi Police has busted a Mewat-based cyber fraud racket that allegedly cheated businessmen by impersonating as Indian Air Force officials using forged documents, an official said on Friday. Four accused, including SIM card subscribers and intermediaries, have been arrested in connection with the case, police said in a statement. According to the police, the racket came to light after a complainant approached the Crime Branch alleging that he was cheated of over Rs 5 lakh on the pretext of supplying Aluminous Laterite, an industrial-grade material. ''The accused allegedly posed as senior officials of the Army and the Indian Air Force and sent forged purchase orders to gain the victim's trust,'' Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Aditya Gautam said in the statement. The police said the complainant was asked to dispatch the material to an Air Force station and was later instructed to deposit money for vendor registration and account mapping after being told he was not listed as an approved vendor. Suspecting foul play, the complainant informed the police. ''During investigation, police traced the SIM cards used in the fraud to Bulandshahar and Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh, while technical surveillance revealed that they were being operated from fixed locations in Nuh district of Haryana's Mewat region,'' the officer said. The arrested accused were identified as Manish (22) from Bulandshahar, Kaushal (22) from Aligarh, Amir alias Burhan (24) and Rizwan Ahmed (30), both residents of Nuh. During interrogation, the accused disclosed that they operated a well-organised cyber fraud racket by impersonating officials of the Indian Air Force. After identifying and targeting businessmen, they would place orders for supply of goods using forged purchase orders and fabricated official documents to establish credibility, the officer said. ''Once the goods reached the designated location, the victims were asked to deposit money on the pretext of account mapping, vendor registration or other procedural formalities. In cases where victims complied, additional payments were demanded under various fabricated pretexts, thereby continuing the deception and cheating the victims,'' the officer said. In the present case, forged and fabricated purchase orders and related documents were sent to the complainant to create a false impression of a genuine government procurement transaction. The police added that the accused procured SIM cards and bank accounts in different names to conceal identities and supplied them to fraudsters engaged in cybercrime activities. During interrogation, the accused disclosed that around 30 SIM cards and six bank accounts had been supplied to associates involved in similar frauds, the police said, adding that further investigation is underway and more arrests are likely to be done.