Gorakhpur. A major case of digital payment fraud has emerged in which a real estate businessman and stock market broker, Vishwajeet Srivastava, allegedly became a victim of a ₹24 crore fraud executed through fake UPI screenshots. Acting on a court order, the Gulriha police have registered an FIR against 21 named accused and initiated a detailed investigation.
Police officials stated that the entire fraud was carried out in a highly organized manner, using technical manipulation and digital forgery to deceive the company and create a false impression of legitimate transactions.
How the Fraud Was Executed
According to the investigation, the victim first came into contact in 2023 with Sonu Jaiswal from Kushinagar, who later introduced Shivam Jaiswal into the network. Both accused initially posed as experienced marketing professionals and gradually gained the company’s trust.
The accused then adopted a sophisticated method. In reality, only ₹1 was transferred to bank accounts, but using mobile phones and laptops, they edited transaction visuals to create fake UPI payment screenshots showing amounts worth lakhs of rupees.
These forged screenshots were sent directly to the company’s accountant, Harikesh Prasad. It is alleged that the accountant, without verifying bank statements, accepted these screenshots as genuine payments, resulting in continuous financial misreporting.
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Three Months of Continuous Fraud
Investigators revealed that this entire operation continued for nearly three months. During this period, fake investment entries and fabricated transaction records were systematically created, gradually turning the case into a large-scale organized financial scam.
Major Exposure Through Audit
The fraud came to light only after the company’s financial year-end audit. During reconciliation of bank accounts, it was discovered that the large sums shown in screenshots were never actually credited to the company’s accounts.
The audit report confirmed that the entire transaction history was based solely on digital editing and forged UPI receipts.
21 Accused and Multi-State Network
Police have named 21 individuals in the case, who are believed to be from Uttar Pradesh (Gorakhpur and Kushinagar), Bihar, and Jharkhand. Investigators also suspect that the network was spread across multiple districts and operated in a coordinated manner to carry out systematic fraud.
Serious Allegations Against Key Accused
According to police records, Sonu Jaiswal and Shivam Jaiswal are identified as the main operators of the network, who entered the company under the guise of marketing professionals and gradually built the fraudulent system.
Other accused include Sudama Kushwaha and Rahul Kumar, each allegedly involved in fraud worth around ₹2.5 crore, Vinod Prasad with ₹1.32 crore, Avinash Prasad with ₹1.55 crore, and Chandan Sharma with ₹1.75 crore.
Naveen and Priyanka Srivastava have also been accused of misusing around ₹82 lakh collected from investors for personal expenses.
Expert Opinion
Cybercrime expert and former IPS officer Professor Triveni Singh stated that in such cases, “relying solely on UPI screenshots without verifying actual bank confirmations is one of the biggest mistakes businesses make.” He further noted that “digital fraud is increasingly shifting from technical hacking to behavioral deception, where human awareness becomes the strongest line of defense.”
Rising Threat of Digital Fraud
Police officials highlighted that this case demonstrates how technical manipulation in digital payment systems can be used to execute large-scale financial fraud. Investigations also suggest that the accused exploited gaps in banking verification systems to create a false appearance of legitimate transactions.
Investigation Ongoing
The Gulriha police have intensified their probe and are examining banking records, mobile data, and digital evidence to trace the full extent of the network.
Authorities have indicated that as the investigation progresses, more arrests and deeper financial links are likely to emerge, potentially exposing a wider fraud ecosystem.
