States » EastPosted at: Oct 2 2026 5:54PM


ED arrests Kolkata man in seven crore ‘digital arrest’ fraud targeting Ludhiana industrialist

Kolkata, Oct 2 (UNI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Sohel Akhtar alias Raju from Kolkata in connection with the alleged Rs 7-crore ‘digital arrest’ fraud targeting Ludhiana-based industrialist and Padma Bhushan awardee S.P. Oswal.
According to the ED, Akhtar was arrested on September 28 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
A special ED court in Kolkata granted him transit remand, following which he was taken to Jalandhar.
A special ED court in Jalandhar has since remanded him to ED custody till October 6.
The agency said it would question Akhtar to ascertain his role in the alleged fraud and trace the flow of money generated through the racket.
Oswal, chairman of the Ludhiana-based Vardhman Group, was allegedly targeted by cyber fraudsters in August 2023.
The accused reportedly posed as CBI officers and subjected him to a ‘digital arrest’, eventually extorting around Rs 7 crore from him.
The ED registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) on the basis of an FIR lodged at the Ludhiana Cyber Crime Police Station.
Nine other FIRs relating to similar ‘digital arrest’ frauds allegedly committed by the same syndicate were also taken up as part of the investigation.
The agency said the proceeds of the fraud were initially routed through bank accounts linked to Reglo Ventures Private Limited and Frozenman Warehousing and Logistics.
According to the ED, Rumi Kalita of Guwahati and Arpit Rathore of Kanpur – earlier arrested by the ED in December 2025- controlled the bank accounts of Frozenman Warehousing and Logistics.
The fraud proceeds were allegedly moved rapidly through multiple bank accounts using an Android application called ‘AMMFORWARD’.
The ED further alleged that Rathore supplied details of fake bank accounts to associates in Cambodia and Vietnam and received cryptocurrency commissions in his Binance account.
The ED said its investigation following their interrogation led to the identification of Akhtar as one of the key handlers of the racket.
According to the agency, Akhtar controlled and managed bank accounts linked to Reglo Ventures and was involved in recruiting people and arranging the opening of fake bank accounts using documents belonging to individuals and entities.
The ED also found that specific Android files had been pre-installed on several mobile phones containing SIM cards linked to bank accounts of different entities, including Reglo Ventures.
The files allegedly enabled associates based in Nepal to access OTPs and SMS messages received on the phones, facilitating the rapid transfer of funds.
The agency said the money was subsequently transferred to multiple fake accounts, generally in amounts ranging from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, before being withdrawn in cash.
These accounts were allegedly opened in the names of financially vulnerable people after promising them loans or jobs.
Earlier, the ED had provisionally attached assets worth around Rs 1.76 crore in the case.
The ED is now probing Akhtar's alleged role in the racket and the movement of the fraud proceeds, including its suspected links with associates operating from outside India.
UNI BGA/SAG NST CDS
Tags: #ED arrests Kolkata man in seven crore ‘digital arrest’ fraud targeting Ludhiana industrialist
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