Mumbai: In a major cybercrime bust, the South Cyber Police arrested Mohammad Kalim Akbar Ali Khan, a 29-year-old resident of Sakinaka, for his involvement in a large-scale investment scam worth Rs 5.39 crore. The fraud was carried out through a fake trading platform called Golden Bridge Investment Group.
The case came to light after a retired businessman from Malabar Hill filed a complaint. He had been duped by a woman who introduced herself as Akriti Desai, claiming to be a successful businesswoman from Noida. The two met on the Topface dating app, after which she persuaded him to invest in the fraudulent Golden Bridge Investment platform.
Khan's bank account had been linked to 51 cyber fraud cases reported across India, revealing a significant flow of illicit funds. His account appeared 7 times in Layer 1 and 31 times in Layer 2 of a sophisticated money laundering network used by cybercriminals to hide fraudulent transactions, according to The Times Of India report.
Police said Khan was closely tied to M/s. Maxmore Payment Digitech Pvt. Ltd., a company registered under his name, handled a portion of the stolen funds. Approximately Rs 5 lakh from the defrauded money was routed through this entity. He was arrested under charges of cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust, and relevant sections of the Information Technology Act, as per report.
Between July 2024 and February 2025, the victim invested nearly Rs 5.4 crore, initially receiving Rs 20 lakh as returns. However, when he tried to withdraw his full amount, he was asked to pay 30 per cent tax on fake profits of Rs 80 crore prompting him to report the fraud.
Police have collected digital evidence, including WhatsApp chats, bank records, and images of suspects. Further investigation is ongoing, with authorities suspecting a wider network with multi-city and possible international links.
