ED raids in Gujarat, Maharashtra in cyber fraud probe over ₹100 cr scam

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The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted searches in Gujarat and Maharashtra as part of a money laundering investigation linked to fraudsters who allegedly committed cyber crimes like digital arrests and transferred funds of more than Rs 100 crore abroad, official sources said.

The raids were conducted in Surat and Ahmedabad in Gujarat and in Mumbai by the Surat sub-zonal office of the federal probe agency under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The money laundering case stems from a Gujarat Police FIR against Makbul Doctor, Kaashif Doctor, Bassam Doctor, Mahesh Mafatlal Desai, Maaz Abdul Raheem Nada and some others, the sources said.

The accused are alleged to have been involved in cheating general public through various cyber frauds such as fake USDT trading (crypto currency), digital arrests, threatening innocent individuals by sending fake notices of law enforcement agencies etc., they said.

The money obtained from gullible persons through this cyber fraud was collected in the bank accounts opened by either using KYC of dummy persons or forging the KYC documents.

The illicit funds were converted into crypto currency though various 'Angadiya' or hawala operators and they are suspected to have remitted more than Rs 100 crore funds abroad, the sources said.