Knp brothers held over fake ‘lucky numbers’ lottery scam

The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) on Tuesday said it recovered five mobile phones, three laptops, three ATM cards, two PAN cards, three Aadhaar cards (one forged), and 31 screenshots connected to the scam. The arrests were made near Kidwai Park in Kanpur around 11:53 pm on October 6.

What seemed like a chance to pick a ‘lucky number’ turned into a multi-crore scam for thousands of people, as two brothers from Kanpur were arrested for allegedly running a sophisticated online lottery racket. Rajat Keshari, 25, and Kishan Keshari, 23, are accused of operating a website, which promised participants tenfold returns on bets placed on numbers between 0 and 9.

The duo manipulated lottery results, duped players across states, causing crores in losses. (Sourced)

The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) on Tuesday said it recovered five mobile phones, three laptops, three ATM cards, two PAN cards, three Aadhaar cards (one forged), and 31 screenshots connected to the scam. The arrests were made near Kidwai Park in Kanpur around 11:53 pm on October 6.

According to STF officials, the Keshari brothers, with help from Rajneesh Kumar Dubey, director of Webtran Technology Pvt Ltd, procured SIM cards using fake documents and created WhatsApp groups to collect bets from Varanasi, Jaunpur, Prayagraj, and Kanpur.

“People would select a number between 0 and 9 and place their bets via WhatsApp or local counters. The software would then declare winners on the least-bet numbers, ensuring the gang profited every time,” STF explained in a press note.

The accused revealed they had moved to Pune in 2022 to live with their maternal uncle, Mahendra Keshari, who allegedly masterminded the racket with associates Sandeep Kataria, Shivam Keshari, Satyam Keshari (all Pune-based), and Sandeep Pathak from Prayagraj. The STF said the operation ran like a corporate setup, using fake firms, dummy accounts, and encrypted communications to conceal transactions.

A case has been registered at Kidwai Nagar police station under sections 3(5), 61(2), 318, 319, 338, 336(3), and 340(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Sections 66C and 66D of the IT Act. STF investigations are ongoing to track remaining syndicate members.