The accused allegedly used fake government identity cards bearing the national emblem and the words ‘Satyamev Jayate’, a car fitted with a government board and a laptop displaying a balance of crores of rupees to gain the victims' trust. Over nearly 11 months, he collected Rs 1,29,25,100 from them under various pretexts, including IP servers, forensic testing, cryptocurrency transactions and Bitcoin recovery.
Of the total amount, only Rs 4.70 lakh was returned, leaving Rs 1,24,53,900 yet to be recovered by the complainant.
The Surat City Cyber Crime Cell has exposed the fraud and arrested the main accused, Priyank Samirbhai Vyas, from Vinayak Dham Apartment in Mira Road, Mumbai. Meanwhile, the search for Rohan Kelawala, a chartered accountant from Surat who allegedly introduced the complainant to the accused, is underway.
The investigation has also revealed that the accused allegedly cheated other people in Surat, with the police suspecting that the total amount involved could be around Rs 2 crore.
Victim Persuaded to Transfer Money
According to the Cyber Crime Cell, the complainant met a chartered accountant in Surat in November 2025 in connection with banking and loan-related work. During the meeting, the chartered accountant told him that he helped people invest money in forensic trading and earn substantial profits.
He also introduced the complainant to Priyank Samirbhai Vyas, describing him as the head of a cyber forensic department and a cryptocurrency expert.
The chartered accountant subsequently arranged a meeting between the complainant and Vyas at a hotel in Mumbai.
The accused introduced himself as “Dr. Priyank Samirbhai Vyas – Forensic Cyber Crime Specialist, Cyber Forensic Department, Mumbai”.
To establish his credibility, he showed the complainant a fake identity card bearing the national emblem and the words ‘Satyamev Jayate’. He also allegedly created the impression that he was a government official by using a car fitted with a government board.
The accused further used email IDs resembling those of government departments, including ‘fslmumbai’, and a UPI ID named ‘fslcyberforensic’, to convince the complainant that he was dealing with an authorised government official.
Vyas told the complainant that he needed Rs 18 lakh to purchase and renew the IP of a terminal he had developed. He claimed that if the complainant paid the amount, he would receive Rs 30 lakh within 60 days.
The accused also offered the complainant a 20 per cent stake in his business.
Trusting his claims, the complainant arranged to have Rs 18 lakh in cash delivered to the chartered accountant's office on January 21, 2026.
Fraud Continued Through Technical Excuses
Following the initial payment, the accused and the complainant began communicating through the ‘Work’ group on the BOTIM app.
Their conversations involved technical discussions about IP purchases, software updates, cryptocurrency transactions and pre-authorised cards.
To reinforce his claims, the accused sent screenshots of USDT transactions and photographs of VISA cards issued by foreign banks.
From February 2026 to October 2026, the accused allegedly continued the fraud by repeatedly promising that large sums of money would be transferred to the complainant before demanding additional payments over alleged technical problems.
At different times, he claimed that a server fund worth Rs 15 crore was about to be released and that another fund worth Rs 153 crore from Argentina was available.
He also spoke of withdrawing money through a card containing US$5.3 million and recovering Bitcoin from the wallet of a person in Nashik.
Using these claims, the accused collected money under the pretexts of gas fees, transaction fees, withdrawal charges, processing fees and loans.
The total amount collected through cash, bank transfers, Google Pay, angadia services and USDT transactions was Rs 1,29,25,100.
Small Refunds Used to Maintain Victim's Trust
To keep the complainant convinced that the promised funds would eventually arrive, the accused allegedly returned small amounts at intervals.
These included Rs 1 lakh, Rs 15,000, Rs 5,000 and Rs 3.50 lakh. By returning a total of Rs 4.70 lakh, he allegedly maintained the complainant's confidence while withholding the remaining money.
One of the accused's alleged tactics was to display a balance of crores of rupees on his laptop.
He would first send a screenshot showing ‘Transaction Success’ and later claim that the same transaction had failed, creating another technical problem and demanding additional money.
The excuses included claims that bank transactions were failing because an IP was being traced behind the UTR, a Withdrawal Limit Error had occurred, the Ethereum server was down or 83,768 ETH had been locked because of a large transaction.
The accused also allegedly claimed that a wallet audit had revealed 17 technical errors, including 15 yellow errors and two red errors.
He demanded further payments to resolve these alleged issues.
At hotels in Mumbai, the accused allegedly invited the complainant and his friends and demonstrated a live transfer of 1.96 BTC on his laptop.
He also added the complainant's bank account as a beneficiary and sent fake screenshots displaying messages such as ‘Payment Initiated’, ‘RTGS’ and ‘Withdrawal Processed Successfully’.
These screenshots allegedly convinced the victims that their money was about to be credited to their accounts.
FIR Registered After Suspicion of Fraud
After the complainant suspected fraud and a preliminary investigation found the accused's activities suspicious, an FIR was registered at the Surat City Cyber Crime Police Station on October 30, 2026.
The case was registered under Sections 318(4), 204, 205, 336(2), 338, 336(3), 340(2), 61(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, along with Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Amendment Act, 2008.
Following the registration of the case, the cybercrime team analysed the trace reports, wallet screenshots and transaction-related information sent to the complainant.
The police also examined wallet addresses and transaction IDs through a blockchain explorer as part of the technical investigation.
Based on technical analysis and human intelligence, a police team travelled to Mumbai and arrested the main accused, Priyank Samirbhai Vyas, from Vinayak Dham Apartment in Mira Road.
The operation was conducted by Police Inspector N.R. Patel and his team under the guidance of Police In-charge Commissioner Wabang Zamir, Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime) Dr. Karanraj Vaghela and Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber Cell) Vishakha Jain.
Chartered Accountant Also Named as Accused
The police have also named Rohan Kelawala, a chartered accountant from Surat, as an accused in the case.
His office is located at Milestone Metropolis in Pal Point.
According to the police, Kelawala introduced the complainant to Priyank Vyas and allegedly persuaded the customer, who had approached him for banking and loan-related work, to invest in forensic trading in exchange for profits.
He had also assured the complainant that he would ensure the money was returned with profits within 30 days.
The police are continuing their search for Kelawala.
Other Victims Reportedly Cheated
The investigation has revealed that a friend of the complainant also fell for the accused's claims and paid a total of Rs 74.90 lakh in multiple instalments through bank transactions and cash.
The police have also received information that another person from Surat was allegedly cheated of Rs 7.50 lakh.
Based on these findings, the police suspect that the accused may have cheated people in Surat of nearly Rs 2 crore.
The investigation into other potential victims is ongoing.
Accused Allegedly Spent Fraud Money on Luxury Lifestyle
The Cyber Crime Cell has also found that the money collected from victims under the pretexts of gas fees, transaction charges and IP purchases was allegedly not used for any server or cryptocurrency transactions.
Instead, the accused reportedly spent the money on his personal luxury lifestyle.
According to the police, he purchased property worth around Rs 1.50 crore in Mumbai and bought a luxury BMW car.
He also booked another flat in Mumbai and paid around Rs 80 lakh as token money.
While the victims were allegedly repeatedly pressured to make payments with assurances that the entire amount would be returned after one final fee, the accused was using the money to purchase expensive properties and luxury vehicles.
The police are collecting documents related to the properties and vehicles to establish whether they were purchased using proceeds of crime and to initiate legal action for their seizure if the allegations are proved.
Following the arrest, the police seized various electronic devices, documents and vehicles from the accused.
Cyber Crime Cell Issues Public Warning
The Surat Cyber Crime Cell has urged citizens to remain alert to online investment and cryptocurrency fraud.
According to the police, cybercriminals lure people through promises of high returns in a short period in the name of stock market investments, cryptocurrency, forex trading, gold trading and online investment schemes.
Citizens have been advised to avoid schemes promising to double money in a short period or guaranteeing fixed profits.
The police have also cautioned people against blindly trusting investment advice received through social media, WhatsApp and Telegram.
Before investing, individuals should verify the legitimacy of the company, institution, broker and investment platform.
People have been advised to avoid investing through unknown websites and mobile applications and not to transfer money under pressure or in haste.
The Cyber Crime Cell has also warned against depositing money into unknown bank accounts or UPI IDs in the name of investments.
If someone repeatedly demands money under the pretext of withdrawal fees, taxes or processing charges to release profits, citizens should remain cautious.
All transaction IDs, receipts, messages and other evidence related to investments should be preserved.
The police have further warned that screenshots of profits and success stories displayed on social media can also be used to trap people.
Anyone who becomes a victim of online fraud should immediately call the national cybercrime helpline number 1930 during the golden hour or register a complaint through the official website, www.cybercrime.gov.in.
Timely reporting can increase the chances of freezing the money lost in the fraud.
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