₹2.80 cr collected in fake NCP donation scam, one arrested

In the case of the fraudulent ads promising a 100% income tax rebate against donations to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the Ahmedabad Cyber crime branch has arrested an individual operating from the city’s Vatva area.

Mohammad Amir Sheikh ran social media ads promising tax benefits and collected a whopping ₹2.80 cr from 86 people.

Hemang Shah, the party’s treasurer, learned about the fraudulent social media advertisement a while ago. A link with bank details for online payment was also attached to the ad.

Over this, the cybercrime police launched an investigation and nabbed the accused based on technical surveillance.

Modus operandi of the fraudster

It was found that the accused, Sheikh, had opened an account named ‘Natare’s Cereal Packaging’ in Bandhan Bank located in Kalupur. He used to abbreviate it to ‘NCP’ and make social media posts with the official logo of the political party, offering tax benefits on donations. He also provided a receipt on behalf of NCP.

86 people were found to have deposited ₹2.80 cr in this dubious bank account since November 2023. He used to withdraw this amount by transferring it online to other bank accounts.

To avoid any suspicion, he opened this account by using the documents of another individual and registered his second mobile number.

He had also started an office in Vatva, and to evade any suspicion, he installed an NCP standee/board there whenever a visitor showed up.

Other individuals are also suspected to be involved in this nexus, over which police have launched a thorough investigation.

It was found in preliminary police probing that Sheikh had earlier opened demat accounts. After this, he indulged in opening dubious bank accounts and started cheating and committing fraud.

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Online scam related to fake NCP donation busted in Ahmedabad