Ghaziabad: Crime branch and cyber police have arrested seven persons for allegedly cheating customers through fake insurance advertisements online. Police said they have allegedly cheated around 70 people of nearly Rs 40 lakh across the country.They allegedly used fraudulent email IDs, Facebook pages and mobile numbers to target customers, asked for their policy updates and sent them forged insurance certificates.Police said the gang had been operating for the past four months and complaints about the fraud had been registered on National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal from Jharkhand and Kerala. Through technical surveillance and human intelligence, police traced the scam to the city. They arrested Neeraj Bhati, Neeraj Solanki, Vikram Singh, Nitin, Sushil Kumar, Rahul Kumar and Vikrant Singh on Friday. Four mobile phones, two debit cards, two cheque books, a passbook and Rs 3,000 in cash were also seized.DCP (headquarters) Balwant Kumar Chaudhary said a Ghaziabad resident, Deepak Kumar alias DJ, led the gang. He is absconding and allegedly hiding in Uttarakhand.DCP Chaudhary said Neeraj Solanki allegedly used to make fake email IDs and Google ads promising discounts on premiums or policy renewal for Tata AIG Insurance. They would put their contact numbers on these ads and circulate them on Facebook pages. When customers called, they persuaded them to transfer money into bank accounts controlled by gang members.“The gang used photo-editing software to prepare fake insurance certificates bearing the insurer’s name and emailed them to victims, making the transactions appear legitimate. Digital evidence, including advertisements, emails and forged certificates, was recovered from the arrested men’s mobile phones,” Chaudhary said.Neeraj Bhati, Neeraj Solanki and Vikrant Singh allegedly handled calls with customers because they had previously worked at a call centre in Delhi. That call centre was allegedly used to cheat people through insurance fraud. They had allegedly left the job when the centre was raided. Through Rahul, they met Deepak Kumar.“Deepak supplied data and mobile numbers of customers. He also arranged mobile phones and bank accounts. Vikram Singh alias Vicky allegedly recruited Sushil Kumar and Nitin, who provided their bank details to Deepak in exchange for a commission,” he said.The investigators said Vikram received 5% of the amount deposited into each account, while the account holders were also paid 5%. The account holders allegedly withdrew the money, retained their share and passed the remainder to Vikram, who forwarded it to Deepak for distribution among gang members. The gang was using six accounts belonging to Sushil and Nitin, police said.Police said Rahul, Sushil, Neeraj Solanki and Deepak have criminal cases registered against them. An FIR in this case has been registered against them under BNS sections for cheating and common intention and Section 66 of the IT Act. The investigation is underway to identify other associates, trace the money trail and examine the bank accounts used in the alleged fraud.
