Ahmedabad, India – The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested four individuals in connection with a Rs 100 crore extortion racket linked to digital arrests, illegal forex trading, and the issuance of fraudulent notices purportedly from the ED and the Supreme Court. The arrested individuals are Makbul Abdul Rehman Doctor, Kaashif Makbul Doctor, Mahesh Mafatlal Desai, and Om Rajendra Pandya.
The four accused were presented before a special court in Ahmedabad on Friday and have been remanded to five days of ED custody for further investigation. The ED alleges that the accused laundered over Rs 100 crore of ill-gotten gains through bank accounts opened using the names of associates and employees, utilizing pre-activated SIM cards to operate these accounts. The funds were allegedly converted into cryptocurrency (USDT) and routed through hawala operators to evade regulatory oversight.
According to the ED, Makbul Doctor, along with his sons Kaashif and Bassam, Mahesh Desai, Om Pandya, and other accomplices, are accused of defrauding the public through cybercrimes such as digital arrests, forex trading scams, and sending fake legal notices. These scams involve threatening individuals with fabricated notices from law enforcement agencies and the Supreme Court. Cyber frauds like 'digital arrests' involve scammers forcing victims to stay on video calls while extorting money by threatening legal action. The ED suspects the funds were collected in bank accounts opened using either dummy individuals' KYC or forged documents.
This action is part of a larger nationwide crackdown on cybercrimes, during which the ED has already attached over Rs 8,500 crore in assets from such scammers and identified over Rs 28,000 crore in proceeds of crime. The agency has involved all its zonal offices to investigate cybercrime cases where a First Information Report (FIR) has been registered by state police or other agencies. A special task force (STF) and two headquarters investigation units (HIUs) in Delhi are also engaged in probing high-value cases. To date, the agency has arrested at least 106 accused and suspects in the ongoing investigation.
The ED's Ahmedabad zonal office conducted raids in Surat and Ahmedabad in Gujarat, and in Mumbai as part of the investigation. The money laundering case originates from a 2024 Gujarat Police FIR against Makbul Doctor, Kaashif Doctor, Bassam Doctor, Mahesh Mafatlal Desai, Maaz Abdul Raheem Nada, and others. The accused are alleged to have cheated the public through cyber frauds, including fake USDT trading.
