Delhi Police on Tuesday announced the arrest of six cyber fraudsters, including the mastermind behind an organised cryptocurrency scam, for allegedly duping a man of ₹10 lakh. The syndicate had created a fake crypto trading platform to lure unsuspecting victims via social media with the promise of high returns on investment.
According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Ankit Chauhan, the accused mastermind, Himanshu Baisoya (23), a BCA graduate from Kotla Mubarakpur in Delhi, operated a network of fraudulent bank accounts. He used these accounts to withdraw cash and purchase Tether (USDT) — a cryptocurrency pegged to the US dollar — from local dealers, earning margins in the process.
The scam came to light when a complainant alleged that he had been cheated out of ₹10 lakh. He was initially attracted to invest in a cryptocurrency trading platform via a mobile application. The platform, however, was fake and designed to simulate profits using a fabricated dashboard. When the victim tried to withdraw his funds, he was told to pay a 30 per cent handling fee in advance, which raised suspicion and led him to file a complaint at the South Cyber Police Station.
Following the registration of an FIR, the police formed multiple investigation teams. Their first breakthrough came with the arrest of Garima (38), a housewife from Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, who had allowed her bank account to be used in exchange for ₹1,000. Her interrogation led investigators to Alok Singh and Avinash Verma, both also from Mirzapur, who were subsequently arrested.
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According to the police, Singh and Verma had been arranging bank accounts in the names of rural villagers, paying nominal sums, and selling them to Baisoya for ₹15,000 each. They also provided SIM cards used for operating the accounts. These accounts were instrumental in laundering the money Baisoya collected from victims. Baisoya was later arrested in Delhi and taken into police custody. He admitted to withdrawing cash and converting it into USDT with the help of two crypto dealers: Simranjeet Singh alias Lavi (28), also a BCA graduate, and Kamal Insan alias Kamal Awana (29), an interior designer. Both are residents of Badarpur, Delhi.
Simranjeet Singh had introduced Baisoya to Kamal Insan, who actively traded in USDT and accepted cash in return for cryptocurrency. The USDT was then forwarded by Baisoya to unknown contacts via encrypted messaging platforms, making the trail of funds harder to track. The police recovered several items during the operation, including five mobile phones, one laptop, and four bank passbooks, all believed to have been used in the execution of the scam.
During further questioning, it was revealed that the syndicate routinely created fake dashboards to falsely reflect large profits and build investor confidence. The use of encrypted messaging apps allowed the accused to maintain anonymity while coordinating with accomplices and transferring funds. The investigation is ongoing, and police are working to identify other victims and additional members of the criminal syndicate.
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