The Central Cyber Police Station in Mumbai recently arrested a 31-year-old man, Ashok Kumar Pasi, for facilitating a gang of fraudsters by allowing them to use his bank account to launder money obtained through cyber cheating. The victim, a homemaker from central Mumbai, was lured into investing in online share trading, ultimately losing Rs34.5 lakh in the scam.
Pasi had previously been arrested by the North Region Cyber Crime Police in a separate cheating case. The current investigation revealed that the fraud occurred between December 18 and January 17. The victim was added to a WhatsApp group focused on online share trading, where members boasted about substantial profits. A participant claimed that a member named Hina Mehta would contact her for guidance.
Mehta provided instructions on online trading and requested the victim’s Aadhar and bank account details to create a virtual wallet in her name. The victim initially invested Rs97,000 and was shown her investments and profits through a virtual link. After successfully transferring Rs1,000 from her virtual account to her bank account, she was encouraged to continue trading through a company app.
However, as she attempted to withdraw her profits and investment, she was met with requests for additional payments to cover taxes. Realizing she had been scammed, she filed an FIR with the police.
During the investigation, police scrutinized various bank accounts where the victim’s money had been transferred and discovered that one account belonged to Pasi. He was already in custody for another case involving a victim who lost ₹27 lakh in a similar share trading scam.