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₹1.07 cr cash, 103 phones seized in Lucknow’s biggest cyber fraud bust
As many as 16 people were arrested from the flat, 12 from Chhattisgarh and four from Gujarat, who were allegedly running a pan-India online betting scam, commissioner of police, Lucknow, Amrendra K Sengar said in a press conference.
In what is said to be the biggest recovery in a cyber fraud case in the city, Lucknow Police seized ₹1.07 crore in cash, 103 mobile devices including smartphones and tablets, 79 ATM cards, 22 bank passbooks, 13 chequebooks, two note-counting machines, and 14 Aadhaar cards, some of which were allegedly forged. The massive haul came after a joint raid by the Crime Team (DCP East) and Gudamba police at a residential flat in Smriti Apartment, Jankipuram, on Wednesday.
As many as 16 people were arrested from the flat, 12 from Chhattisgarh and four from Gujarat, who were allegedly running a pan-India online betting scam, commissioner of police, Lucknow, Amrendra K Sengar said in a press conference.
According to police, the accused used a fake betting platform called ‘Lotus Gaming’ to defraud people. Users were first targeted on Telegram and invited to join private groups, where they were asked to download an app resembling legitimate betting portals.
The app was controlled from the backend by the gang, which manipulated its algorithm to show frequent small wins and big losses. Victims were encouraged to deposit token amounts, which were funnelled into multiple accounts, many of which were either rented or opened using fake documents.
“These accounts mostly belonged to poor individuals who had handed over their banking credentials for money. The entire system was layered to evade detection,” DCP East Shashank Singh said.
Most of the arrested individuals are in their early twenties and hail from Durg and Bhilai in Chhattisgarh. Among them are students, unemployed youth, and tech-savvy operators.
“The lure of quick cash and digital know-how made them crucial players. Each had a specific role, from handling online transactions to managing fake accounts and coordinating ATM withdrawals,” the CP said.
The arrested have been identified as Pramod Sahu, 25, Sajid Ansari, 24, Khemendra Sahu, 23, Sohail Ashraf Khan, 28, Tikesh Kumar Yadav, 23, Sachin Kumar Gupta, 24, Rakesh Kumar, 50, Rakesh Prahlad Patel, 50, Govind Bhai Mangaldas Prajapati, 50, Govind Bhai, 31, Abhay Mishra, 22, Ansh Sharma, 21, Shankar Bag, 22, Vinayak Chauhan, 24, Mohan Singh, 29, and Vijay Sahni, 23.
Investigators are now working on tracking the main handlers of the fake betting platform and the sources supplying fake documents and rented accounts. “The accused are believed to have defrauded people across multiple states. More linkages are being investigated,” ACP Ghazipur Anindya Vikram Singh said.
A reward of ₹1 lakh was announced for the police team involved in the operation.
Modus operandi
The scam allegedly ran through a structured two-layer network, front-end players who interacted with victims and backend handlers who managed transactions and accounts.
To bypass detection, the gang used a mix of real and fake identities, rapidly moving money across accounts before withdrawing cash via ATMs.
“Forged Aadhaar cards, several SIM cards and communication logs have been recovered. The accused used rented identities, making it difficult to trace the money trail,” ACP Ghazipur Anindya Vikram Singh said.
An FIR has been registered at Gudamba police station under Sections 319(2), 318(4), 338, 336, 340(2), 111(3), 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 66C of the IT Act.
In another similar crackdown, 15 held over fake betting racket
In another similar crackdown on cybercrime, Lucknow’s Cyber Crime Police on Tuesday arrested 15 youths allegedly involved in an online betting and fraud racket, following a raid on a flat in Friends Colony near Lulu Mall.
Police seized ₹53,200 in cash, 44 mobile phones, 3 laptops, a tablet, 42 ATM cards, 14 SIM cards, 7 cheque books, 13 passbooks, a POS machine, and 6 account books suspected to be linked to fraudulent transactions.
According to deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Crime Kamlesh Dixit, the accused used fake platforms such as ‘Anna Reddy’, ‘Fair Play’, and ‘99 Exchange’ to lure victims through social media and calls, promising high betting returns. The gang allegedly routed money through fake accounts and destroyed devices and SIMs to avoid detection.
ADCP Crime Rallapalli Vasanth Kumar said 44 cyber fraud complaints have surfaced from multiple states against the gang. Those arrested, aged between 18 and 26, hail from Deoria, Kushinagar, Gopalganj, and Barabanki, and were allegedly recruited through social media with promises of quick earnings.
