Navi Mumbai: In a significant action against financial cybercrime, Navi Mumbai Police have busted a fraudulent call center operating in the Mahape TTC Industrial Area that allegedly cheated several citizens of over Rs 1.02 crore by promising high returns through stock market investments.

The operation was carried out on March 12 after the Economic Intelligence Unit and the Cyber Cell received specific information about suspicious activities at an office in the Technocity Greenscape building in Mahape. Acting on the tip-off, a joint team led by Assistant Police Inspector Suraj Gore and Sub-Inspector Abhay Kakad conducted a raid at Office No. 204, where the illegal operation was being run under the name “DG Share Market Research.”

During the raid, police found 22 young men and women working inside the office, allegedly contacting potential investors through phone calls and WhatsApp messages. They reportedly lured people with promises of large profits from Intraday and Equity stock trading, claiming to provide expert market guidance.

Investigations revealed that once victims expressed interest, they were asked to transfer money through payment links shared by the operators. The funds were first deposited into the company’s main bank account and then transferred across 18 different bank accounts in an attempt to hide the financial trail.

Police further discovered that several of these bank accounts had already been linked to previous cyber fraud complaints registered on the Central Government’s National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal.

Following the raid, police arrested two alleged masterminds of the operation — Shivam Vinodkumar Dubey (29), a resident of Diva in Thane, and Sujit Masicharan Valmiki (30), a resident of Ambernath. Another suspect, identified as Suraj Dubey from Koparkhairane, is currently absconding and police have launched a search operation to trace him.

A case has been registered at the Cyber Police Station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The arrested accused have been remanded to police custody until March 15 as further investigation continues.