Industrialist Duped of ₹1.01 Crore by Fraudsters in Elaborate Scam

Ludhiana: An industrialist, Rajnish Ahuja, owner of an auto parts manufacturing unit and a resident of Sarabha Nagar, was duped of ₹1.01 crore in a sophisticated scam, police said on Sunday.

The fraud began when Ahuja received a WhatsApp call from a person claiming to be an official at the Delhi airport. The caller informed Ahuja that a courier dispatched by him, allegedly containing 16 passports and 58 ATM cards, had been seized at the Delhi international airport. The person also stated that a man named Sanjay Singh had been arrested with the package.

"Ahuja was told that Sanjay Singh had admitted that ₹38 crore, received as extortion money, was deposited in Ahuja's bank account," the police said.

When Ahuja denied sending any package, the caller suggested that his ID might have been misused and that the case would be transferred to the Delhi Police. Within minutes, Ahuja received another call from someone claiming to be Sunil Kumar from the Delhi Police.

"The caller told Ahuja that his arrest warrant had been issued and that he would be arrested for sending the courier and receiving extortion money in his bank account," the police added. To further intimidate the industrialist, the fraudsters sent him a fake arrest warrant.

In a panic, Ahuja transferred ₹86 lakh and ₹15 lakh, respectively, to bank accounts provided by the fraudsters in an attempt to avoid legal action.

The ordeal didn’t end there. Shortly after, Ahuja received yet another call, this time from a person posing as a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) official, claiming that he had been cleared of any wrongdoing and that his money would be returned. However, no funds were ever refunded, leading Ahuja to realize he had been scammed.

Upon receiving Ahuja's complaint, the cyber police swiftly took action by seizing the bank accounts where the money had been transferred. A case has since been registered, and an investigation is underway.