Key operators held in ₹200-cr investment fraud

Two key operators were arrested in a ₹200 crore online forex and gold trading fraud, defrauding over 500 victims through social media and matrimonial sites.

MUMBAI: Two key operators were arrested in a racket that defrauded people to the tune of ₹200 crore by luring them into investing in online forex and gold trading. Five other members involved in the fraud were arrested around two months ago.

Key operators held in ₹200-cr investment fraud

The accused defrauded at least 500 people from Maharashtra and several others from other states by making contact and gaining their trust through matrimonial sites and social media platforms. The victims were then coaxed into investing in online forex and gold trading.

The two key operators arrested on Monday have been identified as Abhishek Anil Narkar alias Gopal and his accomplice, Mohammed Rashid Fakir Mohammed Baloch alias Lucky.

“We picked up Narkar in a hotel room in Mumbai, from where he was operating the fraud,” said senior police inspector Pramod Badakh, with the Mira Bhayander-Vasai Virar (MBVV) crime branch.

Nikhet Kaushik, MBVV police commissioner, said the racket was busted on November 12, 2025, when a raid was conducted at Shivsai Residency on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway, in Bapane.

The main accused, Abdul Sattar, has been traced to Dubai. As part of the racket, Sattar received vast sums of money from India, which he converted into cryptocurrency and then withdrew.

Five men were arrested during the raid in November. They are Roshan Kumar Sitharama Shetty, Sabir Mohammad Khan, Sanad Sanjeev Das, Rahul Kumar alias Kailash Rakesh Kumar and Amir Karam Sher Khan. They were all mule account holders, essentially individuals who provide their bank accounts to move illicit money. A case has been registered against them at the Naigaon police station under the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita.

“The men were instructed to stay at the hotel for a few days and were paid 2% of each transaction for letting their accounts be used. Within three days, at least ₹3 crore had been sent to the three mule accounts,” said Badakh.

He said that while Shetty (from Karnataka), Khan (from Mira Road) and Das (from Mumbai) were the mule account holders, it was the job of Rahul to keep them locked in the hotel room so that they could not disappear with the money. Amir was the link between the trio and a key operator.

During interrogation, Amir gave up the name of Narkar. The browsing history on laptops being used by Narkar and Baloch revealed that the accused had made contact with the investors through various matrimonial sites and social media platforms, gained their trust, and lured them with promises of huge financial gains. They directed them to various bogus websites, instructing them to invest money in online forex trading and gold trading, providing various bank accounts for the deposits.

“We have linked the accused to 51 investment fraud cases, so far, and are investigating further,” said Badakh.

Narkar is a BMS graduate while Baloch has an MBA degree. “Sattar, a Saki Naka resident, is said to be living in Dubai, from where he has been running the racket for the last few months,” said Kaushik.

“We are trying to find out whether the fraudsters used women to lure victims on dating and matrimonial apps, or the men pretended to be women online and chatted with the victims,” said Sandip Doiphode, deputy commissioner of police (crime) MBVV.