Delhi Police nab 4 for running fake call centre and defrauding US citizens of $20 million

Ahmedabad: A special cell of Delhi Police has apprehended a man from the Ghodasar area here in the city, along with three others, for their involvement in a fraudulent call centre scheme that defrauded around 50 US citizens of more than $20 million.

The arrested individual, Vatsal Mehta (28), is believed to have been the leader of the criminal syndicate and responsible for overseeing the call centre operations in Uganda. Aside from Mehta, the other accused individuals were identified as Parth Armarkar (28), Deepak Arora (45), and Prashant Kumar (45), said a police official.

The accused operated call centres in Uganda and various parts of India, including Delhi. As per the modus operandi, the accused posed as employees of US government agencies and defrauded victims by impersonating officials from agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Accused Parth Armarkar, a resident of Ahmedabad in Gujarat, impersonated high-ranking officials defrauded victims of over $6 million through call centres operating in Uganda. The FBI and Delhi Police shared technical evidence and information on Armarkar, which helped the team locate him in Ahmedabad. Armarkar’s arrest subsequently led to the apprehension of Vatsal Mehta, who had been on the run.

The arrests were carried out by Delhi Police in collaboration with the FBI legal attaché and Interpol. The investigation is ongoing, and evidence of fraud amounting to over $20 million has been collected. The accused are currently in police custody. DeshGujarat