noida: The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) along with Noida police have arrested 12 persons, including the technical head and senior business manager of Shine City group of companies when they had gathered to launch a virtual currency — 'Coin Cake Exchange' and 'Virtual Coin' at a hotel in the Sector 58 area of Noida. Cops said that the gang had duped several people for crores in similar way.
As per police, the arrested accused Vikram Singh Yadav is senior manager with Shine city group of companies while Ashish Kumar is technical head, the others arrested are associates of the company. Senior police officials informed that there are over 284 cases of fraud that are registered against Shine group of companies at various police stations of Uttar Pradesh.\
Police investigations also revealed that the company has duped hundreds of people and had conducted fraud to the tune of over Rs 20 crore. For over past two years, the company owner Rashid Naseem had fled abroad after shutting down the company while all those associated were absconding.
Detailing the modus-operandi, Raj Kumar Mishra, additional superintendent of police, Noida STF unit told Millennium Post that the arrested accused Ashish Kumar is an MBA graduate in foreign trade and market investment from Cambridge University in London.
"During sustained interrogation, Ashish told police that he joined Shine city group of companies when he came to India in 2018 as technical head. However, in 2019, the company owner Rashid fled away abroad after the company duped hundreds of people and he is currently living in Dubai" said Mishra.
"He further said that he met Vikram who worked as senior business manager and both of them were familiar with the idea of virtual currency. They hitched a plan to launch a virtual currency and followed the pattern which was used by Rashid. They confessed that they had duped people to earn around Rs 50 lakhs to launch coin cake exchange and were planning to dupe more people in future. They were later planning to leave the country after conducting fraud" Mishra added.
"On Friday, police received a tip-off that some persons, who were previously associated with Shine city company, are organising a launch event of virtual coin at hotel Park Ascent in sector 58 area of Noida. A trap was laid with the help of Noida's sector 58 police and 12 persons including a woman were arrested by police" said Hemraj Meena, Senior Superintendent of police, Lucknow STF.