Four People from Gujarat are Arrested by Bengaluru Police for Cheating CRED of INR 12.5 Crore

Four individuals from Gujarat were recently apprehended by the Bengaluru city police for the theft of INR 12.5 crore from CRED, a credit card payments company. Among those detained was Vaibhav Pitadiya (33), a relationship manager at Gujarat's Axis Bank and the suspected mastermind.

During the inquiry, the police found two cell phones, counterfeit CIB forms, and INR 1.28 crore in cash. "The remaining sum that was defrauded is being recovered. On Corporate Internet Banking (CIB) forms, they falsified seals and signatures. The accused moved INR 12.50 crore to 17 mule accounts in Gujarat and Rajasthan using these falsified documents, the source claimed, gaining unauthorised access to the company's online banking credentials.

Modus Operandi

Pitadiya found that CRED's nodal account handled more than INR 2 crore in transactions per day. He found ways to take advantage of the two linked company accounts that were dormant. A media report claims that Pitadiya came up with a plan and persuaded Neha Ben, an Instagram friend, to pose as the managing director (MD) of the business. In order to present Neha as the MD, he falsified board resolutions and letterhead documents.

Neha asked for a new user ID connected to CRED's account with updated email and phone information by submitting a fictitious CIB form and falsified papers to the Axis Bank branch in Ankleshwar, Bharuch, Gujarat. The group started the fraudulent transactions with these credentials. According to the authorities, two accomplices, Shubham and Shailesh, opened mule accounts and produced fake paperwork in order to transfer the stolen money.

How the Issue got Highlighted?

On November 13, when CRED was performing a bank account reconciliation, the fraud was discovered. It was found that 17 unauthorised transactions totalling INR 12.5 crore had been made to questionable accounts between October 29 and November 11. On November 15, CRED complained to the East CEN Crime Police Station in Bengaluru and brought the matter to the attention of Axis Bank.

Neha had filed the documents in the Ankleshwar branch, which is where the police were able to trace the fraud. After Neha was taken into custody on December 21, the police found Pitadiya and the others through her interrogation. According to investigations, the suspects tried to activate a second CRED-related account by submitting a new CIB form to a separate Axis Bank office. An official declared, "The fraud was stopped after this attempt was intercepted."

They made fake CIB documents and board resolutions and gained access to private information. The fraudulent transactions were made possible by the submission of these documents to the Ankleshwar branch of Axis Bank. The officer further stated that the accused had been remanded to police custody for additional investigation after confessing to the crime during questioning.

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