The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force has arrested a 37-year-old man from Dehradun for his alleged role in a multi-state cyber investment fraud network that lured victims with promises of unusually high returns from stock market and IPO investments.
The accused, identified as Vivek Kumar Singh, was arrested from the Rajpur area of Dehradun on September 19. Police allege that he handled key technical operations for a gang that used social media advertisements, WhatsApp groups and a fake investment app to convince people to transfer money.
The STF says the network has been linked to 3,087 complaints on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. Investigators also allege that fraud proceeds were routed through multiple accounts, converted into USDT cryptocurrency and sent to associates in Dubai.
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Instagram ads used to pull victims into WhatsApp groups
According to the STF, the gang allegedly posted advertisements on Instagram offering stock market analysis and investment training.
People who responded were added to WhatsApp groups, including one identified as “VIP9-6 ACI Exclusive Guidance Group”. There, the operators allegedly shared investment tips and fake screenshots showing large profits.
The purpose, investigators say, was to build credibility before asking victims to put in real money.
Once trust had been established, users were directed to download the ACI Century app through a link and create investment accounts. The app allegedly displayed the amounts deposited by victims along with fabricated profits.
This could make users believe their investments were multiplying rapidly and encourage them to transfer larger sums.
Money allegedly routed through fictitious companies
The STF says victims were instructed to transfer money into different bank accounts.
Investigators allege that many of these accounts had been opened in the names of fictitious companies and were used to move the money through several layers.
After passing through multiple accounts, the funds were allegedly converted into USDT and transferred to associates based in Dubai.
USDT is a cryptocurrency designed to track the value of the US dollar. Fraud networks can use such assets to move value rapidly across borders, although every USDT transaction is not inherently suspicious.
The STF is now examining the digital wallets, bank accounts and intermediaries allegedly involved in moving the funds overseas.
Vivek allegedly handled app and banking infrastructure
Police have described Vivek as one of the network’s technical operators.
He holds a BTech degree in Mechanical Engineering and allegedly helped manage the app as well as bank-account operations connected with the fraud.
During the arrest, the STF recovered one laptop, two mobile phones, two SIM cards, two routers and ₹15,500 in cash.
The case in which he was wanted was registered at Lucknow Cyber Crime Police Station as Case No. 126/2025 under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 66D of the Information Technology Act.
The case originated from a complaint filed by Apoorva Rai.
Police have linked the complaint to an alleged fraud of ₹7.29 crore, making it one of the larger individual cases currently connected with the network.
Four other alleged members were arrested earlier
Vivek is not the first person arrested in the investigation.
The STF earlier arrested Anurag Arvind Srivastava from Nagpur on July 31 and Vinod Kumar Rathore from Jhabua in Madhya Pradesh on August 22.
Sudhir Gangadhar Das and Sheikh Nadeem Salim were arrested from Kashigaon in Thane, Maharashtra, on August 23.
Investigators say Vivek’s alleged role was particularly important because of his involvement with the technical and financial infrastructure behind the operation.
Police records cited by the STF also link him to multiple cybercrime cases in Lucknow, another case at Ashiyana police station and proceedings in Sri Vijaya Puram in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
His name has reportedly surfaced in 11 cases so far.
More than 3,000 NCRP complaints linked to network
The wider scale of the investigation is reflected in the number of complaints associated with the network.
The STF says 3,087 online complaints have been identified on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal in connection with the alleged operation.
That does not mean every complaint has already been legally established as belonging to the same criminal conspiracy. Investigators will still need to connect individual bank accounts, devices, phone numbers and transactions to specific accused persons.
The scale nevertheless suggests that police are examining a network operating across multiple states rather than a single investment complaint.
Investigators are now trying to identify other members, trace the Dubai-based handlers and establish how the allegedly defrauded money travelled from victims’ bank accounts to cryptocurrency wallets.
What this means for you: Any investment platform promising 10 or 20 times returns should be treated as a major warning sign. Do not download investment apps from links shared through WhatsApp or Instagram, and verify brokers and intermediaries independently through SEBI-authorised channels before transferring money.
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