SP Oswal Cyber Fraud Case Update: The cyber fraud of Rs 7 crore with Ludhiana's Vardhan Group Head SP Oswal is far from a normal digital fraud case. On Sunday, Punjab Police busted a gang of inter-state cyber fraudsters for duping textile tycoon & industrialist Shri Paul Oswal aka SP Oswal for Rs 7 Crore. Ludhiana Police Commissioner Kuldeep Singh Chahal stated that two cybercriminals have been arrested and Rs 5.25 crore have been recovered. Ludhiana Police are currently conducting raids to nab the remaining accused in the case. As per Ludhiana Police, a total of 9 cyber fraudsters are involved in the SP Oswal Cyber Fraud Case.
Vardhan Group Head SP Oswal Cyber Fraud Case Update: As per reports, the arrested suspects, Atanu Chaudhary and Anand Chaudhary, have been identified as mere pawns in a larger scheme orchestrated by a mastermind who remains at large. These criminals were so sophisticated that they created a fake Supreme Court to deceive the industrialist.
The fraudsters constructed a virtual courtroom of the Supreme Court where one individual posed as a Supreme Court judge and another acted as a lawyer. They conducted a video conference hearing with SP Oswal, making it all appear legitimate. They went to great lengths to ensure that nothing about their scam looked out of place, even setting up an office that resembled a CBI office, complete with a Mumbai Police-CBI logo.
One of the fraudsters donned a fake uniform and pretended to be a CBI officer during a Skype video call with the businessman, leaving him completely unaware of the enormous fraud taking place.
To further convince SP Oswal, the scammers sent him a digital arrest warrant purportedly issued by the Supreme Court, claiming it authorized them to arrest him. They had thoroughly researched Oswal, recognizing him as a prominent figure in the business world. They told him they were simply investigating a case and requested his full cooperation. The documents related to the case they sent looked authentic, and they even issued summons to bring him into their trap.
SP Oswal Cyber Fraud Case Update
As per reports, Police investigations revealed that the fraudsters were connected to international locations. Details from their WhatsApp calls indicated links to Cambodia. The Indian Cyber Cell has been contacted to gather more information, as the true mastermind appears to be operating from abroad.
Punjab Police’s DGP Gaurav Yadav stated that resolving the fraud case against the Vardhman Group chairman is a significant achievement in the ongoing battle against cybercrime. The Ludhiana Commissionerate police team that cracked the case has been awarded commendation disks. Key members of the team include CP Ludhiana Kuldeep Singh Chahal, SHO Cyber Crime Jatinder Singh, ASI Rajkumar, ASI Parmjit Singh, HC Rajesh Kumar, CT Rohit, and CT Simardeep Singh. The DGP also expressed gratitude to the DGP of Assam for the successful operation.
Who are the cyber fraudsters involved in duping SP Oswal?
The police have named nine suspects in the case, including Atanu Chaudhary, Anand Kumar Chaudhary, Nimmi Bhattacharya, Alok Rangi, Ghulam Moratza, Sanjay Sutaradhar, Ritu, Roomi, and Zakir. All of them are residents of Guwahati, Assam. While Atanu and Anand have been arrested, the financial mastermind, a woman named Roomi, is still at large. She previously worked at SBI and is familiar with banking regulations, which aided in the fraudulent operation.
The police have yet to ascertain which of the named suspects posed as CBI officials, judges, or lawyers. They suspect that there may be additional accomplices involved in the case.
Background of the Case
On August 29, SP Oswal received a call from someone claiming to be a CBI officer, discussing a money laundering case and the recovery of a courier from Malaysia containing 58 fake passports, 16 ATM cards, and other illegal items. They informed him that he was named in the FIR related to this case and used this to instill fear, which led him to transfer ₹7 crore across various bank accounts to the scammers.