Five people have been arrested over a Rs 95,000 scam in Shahdara, with police investigating whether the alleged KYC and QR soundbox ploy targeted up to 60 victims.
Delhi police have broken up a gang accused of posing as Paytm executives and duping street vendors and small shopkeepers in Shahdara, after a complaint from a vegetable seller led investigators to the suspects. Police said five people have been arrested in connection with a fraud case involving Rs 95,000, and they believe the same method may have been used against dozens of other victims across the city and beyond.
According to police, the scam followed a familiar pattern. Two men allegedly approached the complainant, Ramavtar, on October 20 and said they were there to help with KYC issues and a QR code soundbox update. Once they had the vendor’s mobile phone, two unauthorised transactions of Rs 50,000 and Rs 45,000 were carried out. Delhi Police’s cyber guidance warns that fraudsters often exploit merchants’ dependence on payment apps and devices by pretending to fix account problems, urging victims to share access or install suspicious software.
Investigators said they tracked the case through bank records, the flow of money and CCTV footage, leading to arrests in what appears to have been a co-ordinated operation. Juned, 23, Anas, 19, Mohit, 24, Rohit, 19, and Sumit Kumar, 19, were identified as the accused. Police said two of them allegedly carried out the impersonation while the others supplied bank accounts used to receive and withdraw the stolen funds. A Paytm employee identity card was reportedly found on Juned’s phone, and police believe some of the suspects may be tied to around 20 cybercrime complaints nationwide.
The arrests add to a growing body of cases in which scammers have exploited trust in digital payment brands to target small traders, especially those who rely on QR-based transactions for daily sales. Police said they suspect the Shahdara group may have used the same technique against 50 to 60 victims. Officers recovered six mobile phones, seven SIM cards, four ATM cards and three cash withdrawal slips, and the investigation is continuing.
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