IIT-Educated 'Ethical Hacker' Among Four Arrested in Rs 22 Lakh Cyber Fraud Case

Police have arrested four men, including an IIT-trained “ethical hacker,” for allegedly running a cross-border cyber scam that cheated people out of their money by pretending to be stock market advisors.

The main accused, Girish Pandey, 31, had completed a course at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT). He joined hands with Anvesh Makkhan, 32, a physics graduate, to run the scam under the guidance of a cybercrime syndicate based in Cambodia. They tricked investors into putting money into fake stock tips and bogus Initial Public Offerings (IPOs).

According to the police, the duo created fake advisory groups on Telegram and WhatsApp, where they gave fraudulent investment tips and showed fake profits using screenshots and testimonials. Many victims were convinced to invest large sums of money — in some cases, their entire life savings.

The money collected was moved through a maze of shell companies, cooperative banks, offline RTGS transfers, and even cryptocurrencies like USDT (Tether) to hide the trail. The accused acted as money mules, collecting the fraud money and sending it to their handlers in Cambodia.

Two others, Divyansh Chaudhary, 34, and Avi Bansal, 30, were also arrested. Chaudhary allegedly handled the Indian side of the operation, arranging bank accounts and onboarding new victims. He received a 10% commission for each transaction.

One of the fake companies involved was named Bird Technology Pvt Ltd. The cybercrime gang is believed to have used AI tools to identify people more likely to fall for their schemes.

The arrests were made after a Delhi-based victim filed a complaint saying he had lost Rs 22 lakh. A cyber forensic investigation helped trace the scam through multiple fake bank accounts. The police then carried out raids in Delhi, Aligarh, Udham Singh Nagar (Uttarakhand), and Kanpur, leading to the arrests.

Police say the gang also used fake identities and SIM cards to avoid being caught. Efforts are now underway to locate other members of the international cybercrime network, which reportedly includes Chinese and Cambodian nationals.

Investigations are ongoing.