The arrests were carried out between Thursday and Friday by Delhi Police. The accused have been identified as Divyang Patel, K S Tiwari and Krutik Shitoli.
New Delhi: Delhi Police have arrested three men from Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh in connection with a high-value cyber fraud in which an elderly NRI doctor couple were allegedly cheated of nearly ₹15 crore through a “digital arrest” scam.
The accused have been identified as Divyang Patel, K S Tiwari and Krutik Shitoli.
Also Read
Investigators found that on December 29 last year, about ₹4 crore of the total ₹14.85 crore was transferred into a bank account registered in the name of an NGO run by Divyang Patel, police said.
Krutik Shitoli allegedly acted as a facilitator, arranging mule accounts and also receiving part of the proceeds in his own account. Around ₹4 crore of the defrauded amount was transferred into Patel’s account, officers added.
The amount was later broken up and moved through several bank accounts in smaller transactions to evade detection, officers added. The accused allegedly used spoofed calls, internet banking platforms and email accounts to control, route and divert the money.
Further examination revealed that the NGO was fictitious and did not carry out any legitimate charitable work. Police said Patel is suspected to have permitted the fraudsters to use the NGO’s bank account in return for a commission.
All three men reportedly worked for China- and Cambodia-based cyber crime syndicates. The money was subsequently converted into foreign currency and cryptocurrency, including Bitcoin.
The arrests come after the ordeal of Om Taneja, 81, and his wife Indira Taneja, 71, both doctors living in Greater Kailash Part I, who had returned to India from the United States in 2015 after spending more than four decades abroad. The couple had planned to devote their retirement years to social service through their NGO.
Police described the case as one of the costliest “digital arrest” scams reported in the country. The couple lost ₹14.85 crore, their lifetime savings, in just over two weeks.
Delhi Police said further investigation is under way to trace the remaining funds and identify other members of the international cyber crime network involved in the scam.
(With PTI inputs)
Published: 18 Jan 2026, 08:41 am IST
Disclaimer: Kindly avoid objectionable, derogatory, unlawful and lewd comments, while responding to reports. Such comments are punishable under cyber laws. Please keep away from personal attacks. The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of readers and not that of Mathrubhumi.