The North Region Cyber Police Station have arrested a man who provided his bank account to a cyber fraud gang involved in duping people under the pretext of share trading. The accused, identified as Vinayak Pramod kumar Barnwal (28), a resident of Kasheli in Thane, has a total of 106 cyber fraud complaints registered against his bank account across various states in India, police officials said.
According to the Cyber Police, the case came to light after a 58-year-old resident of Dahisar lodged a complaint on June 10. The complainant was lured into a fraudulent investment scheme that promised high returns through share trading. Gaining the complainant’s trust, the fraudsters extracted a total of ₹27.44 lakh under various pretexts related to the supposed investment.
As part of the investigation, police found that the complainant had transferred ₹4 lakh to the first bank account on June 3, as directed by the accused. Of this, ₹2.3 lakh was later diverted to another account held by a co-conspirator. Upon tracing the account holder, it was discovered that the account was used to receive proceeds of the crime, and was linked to Barnwal.
Following technical analysis and investigation, the Cyber Police arrested Vinayak Barnwal from Thane. A mobile phone used in the crime was also seized from him.
Preliminary investigation revealed that multiple cyber fraud complaints from different states are registered against the bank accounts used in the racket, totalling 106 such cases. The Cyber Police are now probing the involvement of Barnwal in other accounts associated with similar offences.
Authorities have once again warned the public not to fall for online schemes that promise quick and high returns through share trading. Citizens are advised not to share or allow the use of their bank accounts by unknown individuals. For any suspicious activity or to report fraud, the police have urged people to contact the Cyber Helpline immediately.