Uttarakhand police bust insurance and heli-booking fraud gangs operating across India Amit, July 19, 2023August 6, 2023 The Uttarakhand police have exposed two criminal gangs involved in fraudulent activities. One gang was deceiving people by offering helicopter bookings for religious pilgrimages, while the other was engaged in insurance fraud. Together, these gangs faced a total of 353 first information reports (FIRs) and 7,500 complaints across different states. The Director General of Police (DGP) of Uttarakhand, Ashok Kumar, announced that four individuals, including the masterminds, have been apprehended after separate investigations. Based in Bihar, the helicopter booking fraud gang had 6,100 complaints and 280 FIRs from various parts of the country. Out of these, five complaints were filed in Uttarakhand, 112 in Telangana, 56 in Uttar Pradesh, 18 in Delhi, 11 in Gujarat, 15 in Tamil Nadu, nine in Haryana, eight in Bihar, eight in Karnataka, and seven in Maharashtra. DGP Ashok Kumar stated, “The accused were cheating people throughout the nation by pretending to provide helicopter services for Char Dham and Vaishno Devi pilgrimages. In a recent operation, Uttarakhand police arrested three members of the gang, including the mastermind named Neeraj Kumar, from Nawada, Bihar. Our investigation revealed that the gang had also established fraudulent loan websites and finance companies. They were even involved in ‘sextortion’.” Furthermore, the accused individuals will face charges under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Information Technology (IT) Act, and the Gangster Act, with their properties being seized as well. Regarding the second gang, their activities came to light after an 82-year-old man from Dehradun lost Rs 43 lakh to an insurance scam. The gang had received 1,400 complaints and faced 72 FIRs from across India. The mastermind of this gang was apprehended in Ghaziabad. DGP Kumar confirmed, “The arrested individual was running a gang that had been cheating people for the past six years, using insurance-related issues as a cover.” He also added, “We will contact the DGPs of the respective states where cases have been filed against both the gangs. This will prevent the accused from securing bail and ensure that they face trial in those states as well.” Breaking News