The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) has made a significant breakthrough in a major cyber fraud case, arresting a crucial operative who managed financial layering for a syndicate specializing in 'digital arrest' scams. The accused, a 40-year-old high-school dropout from Madhya Pradesh, was apprehended in Lucknow's Gomtinagar Extension on Friday.
The Mastermind Behind the Financial Web
The arrested individual has been identified as Pradeep Soni, a resident of Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh. According to the STF, Soni played a pivotal role in the syndicate by impersonating officials from various law enforcement agencies, including the police, narcotics department, and crime branch, to extort money from victims. His primary responsibility was handling the complex financial layering and management of bank accounts used to siphon off illicit funds.
The case came to light after a prominent Lucknow-based professor, Dr. BN Singh, was defrauded of a staggering Rs 95 lakh earlier this year. The elaborate scam began on April 6, when Dr. Singh received a WhatsApp call from a person pretending to be an employee of a courier company. The caller falsely informed him that an illegal parcel had been booked in his name.
Modus Operandi: Threats and Forged Documents
The call was swiftly transferred to another individual posing as a police officer. To heighten the fear and legitimacy of the threat, the scammers then initiated a video call. During this call, a third person threatened Dr. Singh with severe consequences and even sent him a forged letter purportedly from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Under immense pressure, Dr. Singh was coerced into depositing Rs 95 lakh into specified accounts on April 8, supposedly to aid in the verification process.
Upon realizing he had been conned, Dr. Singh filed a formal complaint on the National Cyber Crime Portal. This prompted the UP STF to launch a detailed investigation. Their probe revealed that the bank account used to receive Dr. Singh's money had seen transactions exceeding Rs 1.4 crore. The Rs 95 lakh was meticulously split through 420 micro-transactions into 11 different bank accounts to avoid detection.
Syndicate Links and Previous Arrests
This is not the first arrest in this sprawling case. The STF investigation had earlier led to the arrest of two other gang members, Mohammad Iqbal and Shine Iqbal, in Maharashtra in July 2025. Soni's arrest provides further insight into the syndicate's operations. Additional SP of STF, Vishal Vikram Singh, stated that Soni joined the criminal network after quitting his job in Bhopal.
Around Diwali in 2024, Soni met Amit Kaithwas alias Ketu and Rohit Lodhi alias Bittu, who offered him money in exchange for arranging bank accounts on 'rent'. The deal was lucrative: Rs 10,000 per account plus a commission on all incoming funds. Enticed by the offer, Soni began collecting 'account kits' – comprising documents and banking instruments – from Vidisha, Bhopal, and Raisen.
His role evolved to include withdrawing fraudulently obtained money from ATMs and depositing the cash into other designated accounts. To maintain anonymity within the gang, he communicated using the fake names "Manohar" and "Sanju" on WhatsApp.
Evidence Recovered and Ongoing Manhunt
During the arrest in Lucknow, the STF recovered crucial evidence from Soni's possession. The seized items include:
- Two mobile phones
- PAN and Aadhaar cards
- Multiple ATM cards
- A driving licence
- Bank cheques
- Several SIM cards
- Screenshots of numerous mule accounts used in the fraud
The STF has confirmed that efforts are intensifying to track down and apprehend the remaining members of this sophisticated cyber fraud syndicate. The arrest of Pradeep Soni is a major step in dismantling the financial infrastructure that enables such 'digital arrest' scams, which have become increasingly common across India.
