Mumbai Crime Branch Busts Malad Call Centre Over Fake Franchises, 9 Detained
The Mumbai Crime Branch’s Unit 10 has busted a fraudulent call centre operating from Evershine Mall on Link Road in Malad West and detained nine people for allegedly duping people with fake courier and e-commerce franchise schemes.
The action was carried out on August 24 at around 3:15 pm at the office of Insta Transfer Biz Pvt. Ltd. Acting on confidential information, a Crime Branch team raided the premises and found between 35 and 40 people working on computers. Police detained company owners Devendra Arvind Virkar, 32, and Kamlesh Mohan Shah, 40, along with department heads Nafis Anis Ansari, 34, Danish Amir Beg, 32, Satyaprakash Lalbihari Yadav, 37, and Shoaib Mohammad Sheikh, 30, as well as managers Sahil Aslam Varunkar, 31, Shiva Baburao Baste, 27, and Gautam C.L., 25.
According to police, employees at the call centre contacted prospective customers via phone calls and WhatsApp, promising them "lifetime franchises" and guaranteed returns upon paying a fixed deposit. Callers falsely claimed the firm had tie-ups with major courier and e-commerce brands including Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Blue Dart, DTDC, and BigBasket. Police found that while the company had an arrangement only with Flipkart, staff used false claims to attract investments.
Prospective clients were called to the Malad office, where notarised franchise agreements were signed. However, complainants told police that the company failed to provide any delivery business, ignored follow-up calls, and refused to return their deposits. More than 10 people were allegedly cheated of a total of ₹14.55 lakh.
Crime Branch officials, assisted by cyber expert Pravin Kinge, examined and seized 105 hard disks valued at approximately ₹8.40 lakh, 32 laptops worth ₹8 lakh, 20 mobile phones, five Samsung tablets, a router, and a CCTV digital video recorder. Investigators also recovered telecaller scripts, emails containing customer refund complaints, and details of company accounts held with Axis Bank, RBL Bank, and ICICI Bank.
A case has been registered at Bangur Nagar Police Station under Sections 318(4) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and Section 66D of the Information Technology Act. The investigation has been handed over to Crime Branch Unit 10 to establish the full extent of the fraud and trace further victims.
