Two individuals involved in online fraud operations that collectively defrauded victims from Hyderabad to the tune of crores were arrested by the cybercrime wing of the Hyderabad Police.
In the first case, police arrested Paras Singla, a 29-year-old resident of North West Delhi, for his involvement in an import-export scam. The accused, along with absconding associates Mahesh Singla and Lakshya Verma, posed as representatives of a bogus company named ‘Aces Trading’, presented as a Hong Kong-based enterprise. They induced the victim into transferring over ₹1.11 crore by falsely promising to facilitate a spirulina powder trade deal through Trade Fundamental Private Limited, based in New Delhi.
Investigators revealed that the fraudsters demanded multiple payments under the guise of processing charges, legal fees, and refund guarantees, while assuring the victim of a full refund post-deal finalisation. Once the money was transferred, all communication ceased.
In a separate operation, Chikkala Santosh Kumar, a 31-year-old resident of Warasiguda, Hyderabad, was arrested for duping an individual of ₹7.27 lakh in a stock trading fraud. The victim was lured by a woman identifying herself as Neha, who befriended him over WhatsApp and coaxed him into investing on a fake trading platform, catalystmarketsfx.com. Initially shown false profits, the victim was repeatedly asked to pay additional sums as tax and exchange fees. When demands escalated, the victim realised he had been cheated.
