ACCUSED COUPLE 38 LAKHS BY THREATENING ARREST
Face2News/Chandigarh
In continuation of the earlier press release in connection FIR No. 03 dated 09.01.2026 Police Station: Cyber Crime, UT Chandigarh Under Sections 308, 318(4), 319(2), 336(3), 338, 340(2) & 61(2) Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 has been registered at Police Station Cyber Crime, UT Chandigarh has made another significant breakthrough by arresting five more cyber criminal involved with a high-value fake Digital arrest case. With this, a total of 11 accused persons have been arrested so far.
The operation was carried out under the dynamic leadership of Ms. Geetanjali Khandelwal, IPS, SP-Cyber, UT Chandigarh, with close guidance from Sh. A. Venkatesh, DSP Cyber Crime & IT, and supervision of Inspector Ms. Eram Rizvi, SHO, PS-Cyber Crime, Sector 17, Chandigarh. The arrests mark an important step in curbing rising cyber fraud cases in the region, showcasing the effective coordination and swift action of the PS- Cyber Crime.
The Accused identified as Onkar Sharma S/o Ajit Rai Sharma from Punjab, Age:52 Years, Abhinav Sharma @ Abhi S/o Raj Kumar Sharma from Punjab, Age:43 Years, Jaswinder Singh @ Daddu S/o Shamsher from Punjab, Age- 43 Years., Varinder Kumar @ Vicky S/o Sh. Charan Das, from SAS Nagar, Punjab, Ankush Kumar@ Tarun Gupta S/o Sh. Parveen Kumar from Mohali, Punjab, Age- 29 Years.
The case was registered from a complaint by a Chandigarh resident. The complainant reported that on 07.01.2026 at about 5:50 PM, he received threatening calls from unknown numbers, wherein the callers falsely claimed to be officials from Colaba Police Station, Mumbai, and alleged that his card was involved in a money-laundering case.
He was criminally intimidated with threats of arrest, confiscation of property, and dire consequences if he attempted to leave his house.
Investigation revealed the involvement of an organized cybercrime syndicate operating through multiple modules and mule bank accounts. Earlier, six accused had already been arrested in the case. Further financial analysis of the complaint revealed that an amount of ₹8,00,000/- from the cheated sum was transferred to the bank account of Onkar Sharma, who was subsequently arrested on the basis of technical surveillance and human intelligence.During the course of investigation, it surfaced that Jaswinder Singh @ Daddu played a pivotal role in arranging mule bank accounts, facilitating the withdrawal of fraudulent funds, and delivering the cash to other associates. Abhinav Sharma @ Abhi was found to be acting as a key intermediary between mule account holders and the main accused.
Soon thereafter, the complainant received WhatsApp video calls from another unknown number displaying the name “Colaba Mumbai Police”, during which a person wearing a police uniform continued to threaten and falsely declared his arrest. and forged arrest warrants and fabricated documents were sent to them via WhatsApp.
Later, another call appeared as “CBI Director” on WhatsApp, during which the caller falsely stated that the complainant’s Aadhaar card had been misused in money-laundering activities. Under intense fear and intimidation, the complainant was coerced into transferring ₹38,00,000/- through RTGS into a bank account as directed by the accused.
The complainant stated that he and his wife remained illegal phone arrest from the evening of 07.01.2026 till the evening of 08.01.2026. By impersonating law enforcement agencies, using forged documents, the accused persons dishonestly cheated the complainant of ₹38,00,000/-.
INVESTIGATION: Investigation revealed the involvement of an organized cybercrime syndicate operating through multiple modules and mule bank accounts. Earlier, six accused had already been arrested in the case. Further financial analysis of the complaint revealed that an amount of ₹8,00,000/- from the cheated sum was transferred to the bank account of Onkar Sharma, who was subsequently arrested on the basis of technical surveillance and human intelligence.
During the course of investigation, it surfaced that Jaswinder Singh @ Daddu played a pivotal role in arranging mule bank accounts, facilitating the withdrawal of fraudulent funds, and delivering the cash to other associates. Abhinav Sharma @ Abhi was found to be acting as a key intermediary between mule account holders and the main accused.
Additionally, Ankush Kumar @ Tarun Gupta, S/o Sh. Parveen Kumar, R/o Mohali, Punjab, aged 29 years, was arrested for collecting cash from mule account holders after withdrawal of the disputed amount as well as Varinder Kumar @ Vicky, S/o Sh. Charan Das, R/o SAS Nagar, Punjab, was found to have played a vital role in the movement of proceeds of crime by providing USDT in exchange for cash. He was also arrested during the investigation.
The investigation is at a crucial stage. Police custody of the accused has been sought to trace additional associates, recover proceeds of crime, and dismantle the entire network involved in duping innocent citizens through impersonation and digital intimidation.