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MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Nodal Cyber Police connected Wednesday filed a 2,500-page chargesheet successful a Rs 58-crore 'digital arrest' con naming 32 arrested persons and 41 wanted accused, who not lone impersonated Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers, but besides created a multi-layered web of mule slope accounts to determination wealth crossed states and yet overseas.According to the chargesheet, the probe uncovered implicit 10,000 mule accounts, galore opened successful the names of fictitious companies utilizing forged KYC documents and fake SIM cards. The funds allegedly travelled done 13 layers of accounts, including astatine slightest 27 progressive mule accounts successful Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Rajasthan, earlier being diverted abroad. The masterminds are suspected to beryllium operating from Cambodia and Dubai, with 1 Vijay Khanna emerging arsenic a cardinal handler believed to beryllium extracurricular India.The fraud began successful Aug 2025, erstwhile a pharmaceutical businessman and his woman were allegedly terrorised done calls and video interactions by persons posing arsenic CBI and ED officials. The mates was told that their slope accounts had received "suspicious" funds attracting money-laundering provisions and were shown fake video calls and staged clips depicting constabulary stations, CBI and ED offices, and adjacent mock courtrooms with actors posing arsenic judges, officers, and lawyers.
Under the guise of investigation, the mates was coerced to transportation their full savings of implicit Rs 58.1 crore, with assurances the wealth would beryllium returned aft clearance.Investigators said arrested Gujarat businessman Jayeshbhai Dapa's firm, Jai Bhavani Mechanical, allegedly received astir Rs 15.3 crore, which was past routed to aggregate accounts for monetary consideration. Accounts successful the names of Meghdoot Trading, owned by Sakalkumar Sahu, Jacky Explorer owned by Chirag Sharma, and entities specified arsenic SBV Foundation and M-Stak Innovation allegedly received large sums, ranging from Rs 1.9 crore to Rs 2.4 crore.Devendranath Raut, a nonmigratory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, allegedly received Rs 2.1 crore successful the sanction of Sainath Enterprises and stated, during interrogation, that helium transferred funds astatine the behest of a wanted accused, Shratik. Investigators person besides tracked Rs 3.4 crore allegedly transferred to accounts linked with wanted accused Vijay Gaikwad, Abhijit Jamble, and Ratnadeep.The chargesheet alleged that AVB Foundation, owned by Akshay Meena of Bhilwara, received Rs 30 lakh, portion Maybank Indonesia accounts linked to Technomist Softwares and Arkit Solutions and opened by Devendra alias Sunny and Mukesh Bhatia received Rs 50 lakh. Accused Katunga Raju Samuel Prasad from Andhra Pradesh allegedly received Rs 2.4 crore done an relationship successful the sanction of a spiritual trust.
