Kochi: In a major breakthrough, Hill Palace police on Monday night arrested two youths linked to an online stock trading scam that duped a Kochi businessman of around ₹1.08 crore. The arrested youths have been identified as Adil Meeran (23) of Adivad near Pothanikkad in Ernakulam and Mohammed Yasin (22) of Vannappuram near Thodupuzha in Idukki. Police believe the duo are part of a larger racket operating fake trading platforms to swindle money from unsuspecting investors across the state.

According to the police, the youths were nabbed after officers laid a trap by posing as customers interested in trading. They have been arraigned as the third and fourth accused in the case, while others involved remain at large. Investigators said the network may have defrauded several more victims, and the arrested will be questioned further to identify other members.

Fraud through fake trading platform
The case was first registered at Hill Palace police station on July 17, after a businessman from Thiruvankulam filed a complaint. He told police that he had been lured in January through a Telegram contact, after clicking a Facebook link that appeared to promote online stock trading.

“The scammers convinced the complainant that he could earn huge profits through investments in a company called *Anzo Global*. Trusting them, he transferred nearly ₹1.08 crore in instalments between January and July. The fake platform even showed large profits as returns, but when he tried to withdraw the money, he realised he had been cheated,” said police sources.

Investigators found that the complainant’s money had been routed through multiple bank accounts. One such account, linked to Meeran and Yasin, had seen transactions of over ₹3 crore in just 30 days, raising suspicions that several others may also have fallen prey to the same fraud.

“The accused will be produced before the magistrate. We will seek their custody to track down the rest of the gang. Their phones have been seized and will undergo forensic analysis to extract evidence of communications and transactions,” said the police.

The arrests, police added, mark only the first step in unearthing a larger cybercrime syndicate targeting victims with promises of quick profits from online stock trading.