Surat: The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Surat Sub-Zonal Office, on Friday announced that it has arrested four accused — namely Makbul Abdul Rehman Doctor, Kaashif Makbul Doctor, Mahesh Mafatial Desai, and Om Rajendra Pandya — under Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, in connection with investigations being carried out in multiple cybercrime cases involving more than ₹100 crore of proceeds of crime.

The ED initiated its investigation on the basis of an inquiry conducted by the Special Operations Group of Surat Police under various sections of the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita, 2023, against Makbul Abdul Rehman Doctor and others.

According to the law enforcement agency, in this case, Makbul Doctor, his sons Kaashif Makbul Doctor and Bassam Makbul Doctor, along with Mahesh Desai, Om Rajendra Pandya, and other accomplices, defrauded gullible individuals through various cyber frauds such as digital arrests, forex trading scams, and by threatening innocent people using fake notices purportedly from law enforcement agencies including the Supreme Court of India and the ED.

As per the investigation conducted so far, they were found to be involved in laundering proceeds of crime exceeding ₹100 crore. As part of their modus operandi, they opened or arranged bank accounts in the names of their employees, associates, and hired persons for the collection and accumulation of illicit funds. To operate these accounts, the accused procured pre-activated SIM cards using a similar modus operandi.

During the investigation under PMLA, it was also found that the accused laundered the proceeds of crime by converting them into cryptocurrency (USDT) and routing cash through various hawala operators to evade regulatory scrutiny.

The aforesaid four arrested persons were produced before the Special Court (PMLA), Ahmedabad, which has granted five days’ ED custody for further investigation. Further investigation is in progress. DeshGujarat