Three individuals from Udaipur, Rajasthan, were arrested by Solan police for their involvement in a sophisticated cyber fraud that defrauded a Parwanoo resident of Rs 18.65 lakh. The accused — Vinay Paliwal (26), Rahul Taylor (26), and Lokesh Khatik (33) — were apprehended on December 13, after Solan police secured their transit remand from Udaipur.
The incident dates back to October 8, when a Parwanoo resident, originally from Mumbai, filed a complaint with the local police station. The complainant reported receiving a call from a person named Ajit Rao, who identified himself as a DHL courier service representative. Rao informed him that his Aadhaar card had been used to send a suspicious parcel to China, containing illegal drugs and other illicit items, which was now under investigation by the Customs Department.
Rao transferred the call to Vinay Kumar, who impersonated a CBI officer. Kumar claimed that the complainant’s Aadhaar card had been used in a large money laundering scheme involving Rs 538 crore, linked to a Canara Bank manager and a suspect named Naresh Goyal. He then threatened the complainant, demanding money for further investigation into the matter.
Under duress and constant threats, the victim was coerced into transferring Rs 18.65 lakh to Kumar’s bank account in multiple instalments. For nearly two weeks, the victim was kept under “digital arrest,” monitored through WhatsApp video calls and pressured to provide daily activity reports.
On October 16, the fraudsters falsely claimed the case had been resolved and promised to return the money, minus a 10% commission. However, when the victim attempted to reach out for his refund, he realized he had been scammed.
Following the victim’s complaint, Parwanoo police registered a case under Section 319 (2) of the BNS, initiating a cyber investigation. With support from the cyber cell, the police traced the fraudsters to Udaipur, where they were arrested.
During the investigation, police uncovered that the accused had been operating a long-running fraud network in Rajasthan and Gujarat. The network specifically targeted residents in Himachal Pradesh and other states, extracting money under the guise of fake investigations, often linked to Aadhaar misuse or money laundering. The stolen funds were deposited into benami (fake) bank accounts.
Further probing revealed that approximately Rs 40 lakh had been funneled into these accounts, with the kingpin of the operation suspected of laundering up to Rs 3 crore through cryptocurrency exchanges. Investigators are continuing to unravel the scale of the fraud, and the total amount defrauded could increase as the case progresses.
The three arrested suspects are currently in police custody, and investigations into their past criminal activities are ongoing. Solan police have urged residents to remain vigilant against such cyber frauds and report any suspicious activity to authorities.
