Surat, Aug 18 (IANS) Gujarat’s Surat Cyber Crime Police have arrested a 32-year-old man from Khambhalia in Devbhumi Dwarka district in connection with an alleged Rs 1.52 crore online investment fraud, after tracing his location during a technical investigation.
Police identified the arrested accused as Riyaz alias Shoaib Mirza, who was allegedly involved in providing bank accounts used to route money generated through cyber fraud.
He was arrested from his newly changed residence in Khambhalia after a team travelled from Surat to trace him.
According to police, the complainant was targeted between November 14, 2025, and February 10, 2026, by people who promised higher returns through dollar investments in the share market.
The accused allegedly sent links to a fake website containing forged electronic content and persuaded the complainant to register and create an account.
The complainant subsequently transferred a total of Rs 1,52,63,198 to different bank accounts allegedly provided through the fraudulent websites and customer service channels for trading and investment.
Police said the complainant was later prevented from withdrawing the money.
A case was registered at the Cyber Crime Police Station under Sections 318(4), 336(2), 338, 336(3), 340(2), 61(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Amendment Act, 2008.
Police Inspector Y.S. Sisodia and his team, along with Assistant Police Constable Hardikkumar Gagjibhai and other personnel, worked on tracing the accused.
Police said technical inputs showed that Riyaz was in Khambhalia, following which a team was sent to Devbhumi Dwarka. He was subsequently located at his new residence and arrested.
According to the police, Riyaz obtained bank accounts from people already arrested in the case by paying them a three per cent commission.
He allegedly supplied these accounts to other absconding accused for transferring money generated through cyber fraud and received commission for facilitating the transactions.
Police said checks of the bank accounts mentioned in the FIR on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCCRP) revealed 318 complaints registered across 22 states and Union Territories.
These included 12 complaints from Andhra Pradesh, three from Bihar, one from Chandigarh, two from Chhattisgarh, six from Delhi, one from Goa, 49 from Gujarat, two from Haryana, eight from Rajasthan, 26 from Telangana, one from Uttarakhand, two from Jammu and Kashmir, 26 from Karnataka, 43 from Kerala, three from Madhya Pradesh, 35 from Maharashtra, three from Odisha, seven from Puducherry, three from Punjab, 60 from Tamil Nadu, 17 from Uttar Pradesh and eight from West Bengal.
Police also found seven first-layer NCCRP complaints linked to an IndusInd Bank account that Riyaz had allegedly obtained from one of the previously arrested accused on commission. These complaints were registered in Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Three other accused had previously been arrested in connection with the case: Mineshkumar Solanki, 26, of Ahmedabad; Anil Gupta, 39, of Ahmedabad; and Vikas Singh Bhadoria, 34, also of Ahmedabad.
Their stated permanent addresses are in Patan district of Gujarat, Deoria district of Uttar Pradesh and Agra district of Uttar Pradesh respectively.
The latest arrest forms part of the continuing investigation into the alleged network of bank accounts used to move money from cyber fraud cases.
Police said further investigation into the other accused involved in the case is continuing.
–IANS
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