Cyber fraud money invested in gold:MBA-qualified accused used accounts from 3 states; BJP leader’s son emerges as mastermind

In a bid to get rich quickly, three youths from Narmadapuram executed a cyber fraud scheme using a new method. Acting on instructions from major cyber fraudsters based in Delhi, the trio arrived in Ujjain and purchased gold worth nearly ₹4 lakh using fake Aadhaar cards and forged IDs. The payment was made through QR codes using money obtained from cyber fraud. The plan was to resell the gold and convert the fraud proceeds into cash. Since the payment originated from cybercrime-linked funds, the bank account of the jewellery showroom involved was frozen. The case reached Madhavnagar Police, which used technical surveillance and CCTV footage to trace and arrest the three accused — Animesh Verma, Kashish Badhani and Rahul Gupta — from a hotel in the Mahakal area. All three accused hold MBA degrees. On Thursday, they were produced before a court and remanded to police custody until June 21. Caught by the mobile number seen in the CCTV camera Madhavnagar Police Station in-charge Gajendra Pachoriya said that around 9 pm on June 6, the owner of DPK Jewellers in Freeganj arrived at the police station in a distressed state. He informed police that a youth had purchased a gold coin worth ₹92,000 earlier in the day, following which the showroom’s bank account was frozen at night. Police immediately suspected that the transaction involved money generated through cyber fraud. Without wasting any time, officers reached the showroom the same night and examined CCTV footage. The footage showed one youth making the purchase while another was standing outside. During the transaction, the buyer received a phone call. The camera angle was such that the mobile number appearing on the phone screen was clearly captured in the footage. Using this crucial technical clue, police traced the location and arrested all three accused. Gold worth 4.65 lakh bought from 4 shops in 10 days TI Gajendra Pachoriya said the main accused is Animesh Verma. Around three months ago, he came into contact with a Telegram account named “Satvik” on the cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance. The fraudsters lured him with promises of huge profits. He was told that the money came from a gaming platform and needed to be invested in gold before being converted into legitimate funds. Tempted by the commission on offer, he agreed. After understanding the modus operandi, Animesh brought Kashish and Rahul into the scheme. As per the plan, the trio arrived in Ujjain and stayed for 10 days at Hira Palace and Shri Darshan Hotel. During this period, they purchased gold from three showrooms. The QR codes of the shopkeepers were sent to the Delhi-based fraudsters, who made payments using money siphoned from the bank accounts of cyber fraud victims in Rajasthan, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Fraudsters make people invest money in petrol pumps and gold Ujjain SP Pradeep Sharma said the fraudsters used ₹2.88 lakh from the account of Mohammad Nasir of Nagaur in Rajasthan, ₹95,000 from the account of Surinder Singh of Punjab, and ₹99,000 from the account of Manoj Kumar of Ghaziabad to pay for the gold purchases. SP Sharma said the operation is part of a large international digital syndicate being run from Delhi. Members of the network invest fraud proceeds in petrol pumps and gold because gold’s commodity value rarely declines. The payments have currently been frozen, and a police team is being sent to Delhi for further investigation.