A Retired IAS Officer Defrauded of ₹3.37 Cr in Fake Trading App Scam
A Retired IAS Officer Defrauded of ₹3.37 Cr in Fake Trading App Scam
People claiming to be professional stockbrokers approached the retired officer, who had senior positions in the former Andhra Pradesh government, according to the complaint submitted to the Telangana Cyber Security Bureau (TGCSB). Through a URL that linked to a slick but bogus trading program called “Dhani Securities,” the scammers persuaded him to install an APK file.
Arjun Ramesh Mehta, one of the main suspects, claimed to be the company’s chief investment officer. Together with others, he tempted the victim with the promise of large returns through options trading, mutual funds, and initial public offerings. The scammers created the appearance of a genuine business supported by AI-driven trading techniques by frequently sharing stock market data and trading advice via WhatsApp in order to establish trust.
₹3.3 Crore Invested, But A Fake Tax Demand Prevented Payout.
The retired officer invested a total of ₹3.37 crore in the fraudulent platform between March and May 2025, completing many transactions totaling between ₹28,000 and ₹50 lakh. When he tried to withdraw his purported earnings, which had reportedly increased to ₹22 crore, the scheme started to fall apart.
The officer reported the event after being informed that he would have to pay an additional ₹33.5 lakh to access the profits instead of receiving them. When he realized he had been tricked, he went to the TGCSB, which filed a case and started an inquiry right away.
Case Registered Under BNS and IT Act, Probe Underway
A case was filed on Friday under the recently implemented Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections:
- Section 318(4): Cheating
- Section 319(2): Personation with intent to cheat
- Section 338: Falsification of documents and valuable securities
- In addition, Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act addresses impersonation utilizing computer resources as a form of cheating.
In order to locate and capture the accused, TGCSB officials revealed that they are tracing bank transactions and analyzing the digital trace. Authorities have cautioned the public to evaluate investment platforms through recognized regulatory agencies such as SEBI and to refrain from installing APK files from unidentified sources.
About The Author:
Yogesh Naager is a content marketer who specializes in the cybersecurity and B2B space. Besides writing for the News4Hackers blogs, he also writes for brands including Craw Security, Bytecode Security, and NASSCOM.
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