Mumbai, Feb 05: The sessions court has refused to grant protection from arrest to a 23-year-old student and photographer, Aziz Shaikh, booked in a cyber fraud case in which a 79-year-old man was cheated of Rs 2.65 crore through a “digital arrest”, where fraudsters impersonated police and Enforcement Directorate officials in 2025.
Funds routed through ‘Amardeep Traders’ account
The prosecution claimed that the investigation revealed Rs 39.40 lakh was transferred to a bank account in the name of “Amardeep Traders”, linked to co-accused Jayesh Zaveri, who has already been arrested. The amount was allegedly deposited by the complainant on the instructions of the accused.
The probe further revealed that on October 4 last year, Rs 3.42 crore was deposited into the same account, which was immediately transferred to other bank accounts to siphon off the money. The account, the prosecution said, belonged to Zaveri.
WhatsApp chats indicate ‘deep nexus’, says prosecution
It was claimed that Shaikh had obtained the bank account details of Zaveri and utilised the account along with other wanted accomplices for the crime. “This fact is clearly visible and established from the WhatsApp conversations investigated between Zaveri and Shaikh,” the prosecution said.
The prosecution also alleged that Shaikh lured poor and needy persons with inducements and promises, created fake bank accounts in their names and used them for cyber crimes. Conversations between Shaikh and the wanted accused allegedly showed the sharing of details of various bank accounts.
Accused claims false implication
Shaikh, however, claimed that he was falsely implicated and dragged into the case merely because of his acquaintance with Zaveri, who is also his neighbour. He said he was a young man with a clean record.
Court cites material evidence, rejects bail plea
Rejecting his plea for anticipatory bail, the court observed that while Shaikh claimed innocence, the material collected by the investigating agency indicated otherwise. The court noted that WhatsApp chats revealed a “deep nexus”, showing him sharing sensitive information such as user IDs, passwords, email verification codes and debit card details of several banks.
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The court further said the investigation prima facie indicated that Shaikh procured the “Amardeep Traders” account, which was used to launder nearly Rs 39 lakh of the complainant’s money.
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