Bhavnagar NSUI district president arrested in ₹47.50 lakh IPO investment fraud case

The Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch on Friday arrested the Bhavnagar district president of the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), Arshman Khan Zorawar Khan Shuk (Baloch), for allegedly orchestrating a large-scale online IPO investment scam and siphoning off over ₹47.50 lakh from a complainant. Police said the accused is also linked to at least 27 cyber-fraud complaints registered across multiple states and had earned over ₹1.50 crore in commission from such scams over the last one-and-a-half years.

Fraud carried out through fake Franklin Templeton ‘WhatsApp investment groups’

According to the FIR, the complainant was added on November 3, 2024 to a WhatsApp group named ‘107 Franklin Templeton Investment Strategy’, operated by individuals posing as foreign financial advisors under names such as Felicity Walsh, Jeff Mason, and Berengere Blaszczyk.

The group members sent messages encouraging high returns on IPOs and stock trades and persuaded the complainant to download an application named FPIWM.

Believing the claims, the complainant transferred a total of ₹50.50 lakh to multiple bank accounts sent by the alleged advisors. Of this, only ₹3 lakh was returned, with the remaining ₹47.50 lakh misappropriated, police said.

Investigation reveals network centred in Bhavnagar

Acting on specific technical leads, the Cyber Crime Branch traced the money trail to Bhavnagar and arrested Arshman Khan, a resident of Budhana village near Shihor. Police said Khan, who is president of the Bhavnagar NSUI and had filed his candidature for the Gujarat Youth Congress elections for 2025, allegedly played a key role in receiving and moving the defrauded money.

During the investigation, it emerged that the accused operated with the help of multiple agents to open savings accounts in the names of different individuals. He used these accounts to receive fraudulent deposits, which were then allegedly routed to him through angadia couriers.

Police said that ₹2.99 lakh received in one such HDFC Bank account was withdrawn via cheque by an associate named Syed Moinnawaz, then handed to another man, Mohammad Junaid, who forwarded the amount to the accused through angadia channels.

11 bank accounts, 27 cyber complaints across India

Authorities found that Arshman Khan handled fraudulent deposits across 11 bank accounts, including those in HDFC Bank, Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, SBI, Punjab National Bank and the Ahmedabad District Co-operative Bank.

A total of 27 cyber fraud complaints linked to these accounts were registered in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, officials said.

Link to Dubai-based Chinese cyber fraud syndicate

Police stated that the accused had been in regular contact with a Dubai-based handler known as ‘Chokarbhai’, who allegedly coordinated money movements on behalf of a Chinese cyber-fraud network.

Investigators said Khan frequently travelled to Dubai about 18 months ago for his scrap business, during which he reportedly established connections with members of the fraud syndicate.

He allegedly earned up to 25% commission per transaction, amounting to over ₹1.50 crore in the last 18 months.

Prior criminal cases

Police said Khan also has previous cases registered against him, including under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the IT Act, in Palitana and Vadodara.

Case registered, further investigation on

The Cyber Crime Branch said that efforts are under way to identify other handlers, money mules, and foreign-based operators involved in the racket. The seized bank accounts and digital evidence are being forensically analysed.

Officials added that more arrests are likely as the probe expands into the wider investment-fraud network.