Four Indian people arrested over claims of forex scam

Chris Lee

Four men from India have been arrested as part of a crackdown against foreign exchange fraud by Indian law enforcement officials.

The men, who come from major areas like Gujarat and Bengaluru, stand accused of scamming investors out of more than INR 47,000,000, which is equivalent to over USD $67,000 or GBP £52,000.

They were arrested on Monday 20 August 2018.

As well as allegedly offering fake foreign exchange pairs, the gang are accused of asking investors to contribute to what they thought was a global stock market scheme that was, in fact, a scam.

According to local media, the gang told some of those who invested that it would be possible to increase their initial investment by multiples of three or four.

However, one statement from an alleged victim even claims that the gang told him he could earn back hundreds of times the amount he invested.

Rakesh Patra, one of the plaintiffs who claims he was scammed out of INR 17,000, said the gang had “lured” him before they were trapped in a sting by police officers.

“The gang had lured me to invest in the trading scheme promising 300 to 500 times return,” he told Odisha TV.

He also said that the gang then went cold, leading to the arousal of suspicions.

“After they did not return calls, we sensed something wrong. We contacted the group members through another friend about possible investment opportunity. Later, four members were arrested by police when they had come to meet investors here,” he added.

Patra claims that other alleged victims may have lost up to INR 30,000 between them.

A police spokesperson in the area also released a statement confirming the allegations:

“Preliminary investigation reveals that the gang had collected money in Indian currency and later used it to purchase foreign currencies. The gang members used to deposit the money in a fake account to win the trust of people,” said Anup Sahu, Deputy Commissioner of Police for the city of Bhubaneswar in the Indian state of Odisha.

India has a major problem with internet-based financial product scams, and this is far from the first such incident in recent times.

The country has a large technology workforce – and while that can bring many benefits in terms of legitimate market activities, it also means that there is a high occurrence of internet-based fraud.

At the end of last month, for example, an Indian website design professional, also from Gujarat, was taken into custody by police in Hyderabad after he allegedly scammed an investor out of INR 200,282,90, equivalent to more than USD $287,000 or GBP £220,000.

In that case, the alleged perpetrators were accused of everything from using false details to encouraging tax-evasive practices among their apparent victims.

“[The alleged fraudster] and others used to introduce themselves using fake names while talking to victims. The accused used to make the victims pay money through unauthorised means like hawala and cite reasons like avoiding taxes,” police in Hyderabad told the Times of India.


Chris Lee

Latest news

Forex vs Crypto: What’s Better For Beginner Traders?
The crypto and forex markets are two of the world’s most popular among investors and traders. Read more
Three Great Technical Analysis Tools for Forex Trading
You don’t have to be very technical minded to make use of technical analysis in your forex trading. Read more

Safest Forex Brokers 2024

Broker Info Best In Customer Satisfaction Score
#1 Blackbull LogoYour capital is at risk Founded: 2014 Global Forex Broker
Number One Broker
BEST SPREADS Visit broker
4.8
#2 AvaTrade LogoYour capital is at risk Founded: 2006 Globally regulated broker
Number One Broker
BEST CUSTOMER SUPPORT Visit broker
4.9
#3 * 82% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money Founded: 2008 Global CFD Provider
Number One Broker
Best Trading App Visit broker
5
#4 Between 74-89 % of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs Founded: 2010 Global Forex Broker
Number One Broker
Low minimum deposit Visit broker
4.9
#5 Forex Broker eToro Logo76% of CFD traders lose money Founded: 2007 Global CFD & FX Broker
Number One Broker
ALL-INCLUSIVE TRADING PLATFORM Visit broker
4.9
#6 XM LogoYour capital is at risk Founded: 2009, 2015 and 2017 Global Forex Broker
Number One Broker
Low minimum deposit Visit broker
5
#7 FxPro LogoYour capital is at risk Founded: 2006 CFD and Cryptocurrency Broker
Number One Broker
CFD and Cryptocurrency Visit broker
5

    Forex Fraud Certified Brokers

    XM Logo
    FxPro logo
    eToro Logo
    FXTM Logo
    AvaTrade logo
    BlackBull Logo Small
    CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.