Discom scam: Two held for duping man of Rs 20.4 lakh via UPI trick

New Delhi: Delhi Police have arrested two cyber fraudsters for allegedly defrauding a resident of east Delhi’s Mansarovar Park of around Rs 20.4 lakh by posing as an official of a discom.

According to police, the scam came to light when the man filed a complaint on March 8. The man claimed that he received a phone call from an unknown number, with the caller claiming to be a discom official wanting to discuss updating his electric meter. He was then induced to pay Rs 13 through UPI for the same before multiple unauthorised transactions amounting to around Rs 20.4 lakh took place, police said.

A case was registered at the cyber police station in Shahdara district. Police said that the complainant immediately contacted customer care and got his accounts blocked. A police team was formed to trace and apprehend the accused.

DCP (Shahdara) Rajendra Prasad Meena said, “The bank transaction details and money trail were analysed. It was revealed that the cheated money was transferred to multiple accounts, one of which was found under the name of a resident of UP’s Firozabad, Shiv Kumar.”

Police added that after receiving the cheated amount, the accused routed the funds through multiple layers. Kumar was nabbed, and he disclosed that he handed over his ID to an associate from Firozabad, identified as Anshu Kumar, who allegedly carried out the transactions. Both were arrested.

The accused told cops that they would initially ask for a small payment through UPI applications and then gain unauthorised access to the victim’s mobile phone and banking credentials. The money was then reportedly routed through wallets and multiple bank accounts to conceal its origin and avoid detection. Police have seized two mobile phones.