The Special Operations Group (SOG) of Surat city police has successfully uncovered an online fraud syndicate that masqueraded as a fictitious textile company to deceive unsuspecting individuals. The accused targeted unemployed individuals, convincing them to share their bank account details in exchange for monetary rewards.
Once the fraudsters gained access to these accounts, they transferred illicit funds through various channels, ultimately converting the money into USDT cryptocurrency before sending it to Dubai.
Police suspect that this gang, which has been operating for three years, may have defrauded victims of crores of rupees.
During an operation on Saturday, the SOG team arrested four individuals: Hiren Molaviya, Mehul Vitthlani, Paresh Barwaliya, and Pratik Jotangiya. Two other suspects, Rohit Vagadiya and Nitesh Golakiya, remain at large and have been declared wanted.
Acting on a tip-off, sub-inspector A P Jebaliya and sub-inspector R S Bhatiya, along with other SOG personnel, conducted a raid at an office in the Angel Square complex in the Utran area. During the operation, they seized 41 current and savings bank cheque books belonging to various individuals, 14 additional cheques, numerous debit cards, and SIM cards.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the gang targeted economically disadvantaged and unemployed individuals, offering them between Rs10,000 and Rs12,000 to open bank accounts and retain the account kits. Unbeknownst to the victims, they were being exploited as pawns in the gang’s fraudulent operations.
