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Shahjahanpur farmer duped of ₹1.04-cr in digital arrest scam, 7 held
The victim, Sharad Chandra Saxena of Mohalla Diwan Jograj in the Chowk Kotwali area, was targeted by scammers who posed as officials from law enforcement and financial agencies. They accused him of being linked to illegal transactions worth ₹2.8 crore, claiming he was under probe in a fraud case, police said on Wednesday.
A 62-year-old progressive farmer from Shahjahanpur was duped of ₹1.04 crore by an interstate cyber fraud gang that allegedly trapped him in a fake legal case and carried out what police have described as a “digital arrest.” Seven members of the network, spread across multiple states, have been arrested, while the alleged mastermind remains at large.
The victim, Sharad Chandra Saxena of Mohalla Diwan Jograj in the Chowk Kotwali area, was targeted by scammers who posed as officials from law enforcement and financial agencies. They accused him of being linked to illegal transactions worth ₹2.8 crore, claiming he was under probe in a fraud case, police said on Wednesday.
Over 14 days, the gang used video calls, forged documents, and fake legal threats to convince Saxena that he needed to pay for “bail” and secure his acquittal. Believing he was under digital surveillance, the farmer transferred ₹1.04 crore to accounts provided by the fraudsters, police said. The gang eventually cut all contact, switching off their phones after assuring him of a clean chit.
Shahjahanpur police initiated an investigation soon after Saxena lodged a complaint. They traced the fund flow and identified four accounts where the money was initially received. These funds were later routed into 40 different accounts across the country, according to Superintendent of police (SP) Rajesh Dwivedi.
“One major transaction involved ₹71 lakh being transferred to a corporate account in Hyderabad, which had seen ₹3 crore in activity on the same day. The account holder had earlier filed a cyber complaint, alleging unauthorised access and misuse of his account,” the SP said.
Based on the trail, police arrested seven accused: Sachin Ahirwar (Jhansi), Prashant Katara (Agra), Gautam Singh alias Thakur (Delhi), Sandeep Kumar Pundir (Bulandshahr), Syed Saif alias Sonu (Faridabad, Haryana), Aryan Sharma (Ghaziabad), and Pawan Yadav (Tikamgarh, Madhya Pradesh).
SP Dwivedi said all seven are part of a fintech-based cyber fraud syndicate. Gautam Singh, one of the accused, holds an MBA and was allegedly responsible for coordinating fund movements and digital communication for the gang. Each accused operated on a commission ranging from 2% to 10%, depending on their role.
Nine mobile phones, seven debit cards, and a bank passbook were seized from them.
Officials said those arrested were not the masterminds, but mid-level operatives. The main conspirator is still on the run, and police teams are working to trace his location.
