Surat Office Boy Arrested in ₹1.95 Crore Cyber Fraud Case in Bhosari MIDC

A 22-year-old office boy working in a lawyer’s firm in Surat has been arrested in connection with a major cyber fraud worth ₹1.95 crore. The incident, reported on May 15 from Bhosari MIDC in Pimpri-Chinchwad, highlights the growing threat of cybercrime in India.

The accused has been identified as Jenil Vasantbhai Waghela, a resident of Kamrej in Surat. He was arrested by police on May 16 at around 12:25 pm after a swift investigation by the cybercrime cell.

According to police, the accountant of a private company in Bhosari MIDC received a WhatsApp call at 11 am from a fraudster using the company director’s profile photo. The caller, impersonating the director, instructed the accountant to transfer ₹1.95 crore to a "client" for an urgent project. Without verifying the request, the accountant transferred the money.

The fraud came to light when the real company director received a transaction alert and quickly contacted the Pimpri-Chinchwad cyber police. Investigations revealed that ₹95 lakh had already been withdrawn from multiple locations across Maharashtra, but police managed to freeze the bank account, saving ₹1 crore from being siphoned off.

Assistant Police Inspector Pravin Swami stated that this was Waghela’s first involvement in such a crime and he had received the fraudulent funds by charging a 1% commission.

“At around 1 pm, the complaint was filed. Our technical analysis revealed that the money was withdrawn from an ATM in Surat. Fortunately, one of our officers was already in Surat on another case. We directed him to arrest the suspect immediately,” Swami added.

The Pimpri-Chinchwad cyber police have registered a case under Sections 316(2), 318(4), and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Sections 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act.

Police are currently tracking down other individuals possibly involved in the cyber fraud network.