In a major breakthrough, the Pimpri Chinchwad cyber police arrested two individuals—Sudhanshu Sahu (54), a school teacher from Bhubaneswar, and Pramod Garud (30), a tax consultant from Mumbai, for their involvement in a Rs69 lakh online stock trading scam.
The case unfolded after a software engineer from Wakad, working at a reputed IT firm in Hinjewadi, filed a complaint alleging that he had been duped via a fake trading platform promoted on social media and messaging apps. He was added to a so-called investor group and lured into installing a fraudulent trading app, which promised substantial returns.
He eventually transferred ₹69 lakh to several bank accounts and was shown fake profits worth Rs4 crore on the platform. However, when he attempted to withdraw his profits, he was blocked and realized he had been scammed.
Police investigation revealed that part of the money had been transferred to an account in Bhubaneswar. A team from the cyber cell arrested Sudhanshu Sahu, who admitted to giving his bank account to fraudsters for commission. Similarly, Rs14.76 lakh was found to be transferred to a cooperative bank account in Mumbai, leading to the arrest of Pramod Garud, who also provided his account for illegal transactions.
Both were arrested for knowingly acting as mule account holders, enabling cybercriminals to siphon money through their bank accounts.
The investigation is ongoing to uncover the broader network involved in the scam.
