Digital Arrest Scam: ED Unearths ₹30,000 Crore Pan-India Money Trail

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested two persons in connection with an alleged pan-India cyber fraud and digital arrest racket involving transactions worth nearly ₹30,000 crore, officials said on Monday.

Fahim Moin Hussain Sayed and Naim Mueen Sayyed were arrested in Mumbai on Sunday and produced before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court. The court granted the agency transit remand to take them to Panaji, where the case is registered. The ED is expected to seek their custodial remand for further questioning.

The investigation follows an FIR registered by Goa Police on June 9, 2025, after a Goa-based woman was allegedly duped of ₹2.60 crore between May 21 and June 2. Cyber fraudsters allegedly coerced her into transferring the money to so-called “Secret Supervision Accounts” during a digital arrest.

According to the ED, the victim’s money was routed through 400 bank accounts, withdrawn in cash and subsequently converted into foreign currency through RBI-licensed money changers.

The agency said its investigation uncovered an interconnected network of commodity, trading, travel and forex entities that conducted banking transactions exceeding ₹27,850 crore. The entities also received around ₹2,904 crore in cash deposits, including ₹584.70 crore through 61,448 bulk note acceptance machine transactions across multiple locations.

The accounts have allegedly surfaced in 300 cyber fraud complaints and 163 FIRs registered across 20 states and Union Territories. The complaints collectively involve reported losses of ₹417.49 crore.

The ED conducted searches in Goa and Mumbai in July and again on August 21, during which it seized approximately ₹3.25 crore in cash.

Investigators also found that shell or dummy companies allegedly appointed drivers and employees living in single-room accommodations as directors, indicating a suspected mechanism to conceal the identities of the actual operators behind the network.