Panchkula Police bust Rs 2.26 crore fake income tax refund fraud targeting NRI, one held

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Panchkula, July 15

Panchkula Police have arrested the alleged mastermind of an inter-state cyber fraud syndicate accused of fraudulently obtaining an income tax refund of Rs 2.26 crore by hacking an NRI’s Income Tax e-filing account. The accused, identified as Dalip B.R., alias Dalip Rajgoda, was arrested in Karnataka and has been remanded to eight days of police custody for further interrogation.

The Cyber Crime Police Station team carried out the arrest as part of an ongoing crackdown on cybercrime under the direction of Police Commissioner Pankaj Nain. Investigators are now questioning the accused to uncover the full extent of the syndicate, its network of fake bank accounts and the movement of the fraudulently obtained funds.

According to DCP Crime and Traffic Amarinder Singh, eight similar cases have been registered against the accused in Bengaluru. Investigators have identified nearly Rs 13 crore in suspicious transactions across nine bank accounts linked to him. He was previously arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in 2025 and was allegedly changing locations continuously after securing bail to evade arrest.

The police said the accused holds a Bachelor of Technology degree in Mechanical Engineering and, during questioning, claimed he was engaged in the coconut trade.

The case was registered following a complaint by an NRI resident of Panchkula, who has been living in the United Kingdom for nearly 50 years. The complainant had lawfully filed an income tax return for the financial year 2023–24 and had already received the legitimate refund.

Subsequent investigations revealed that unidentified cybercriminals allegedly hacked the complainant’s Income Tax e-filing account, changed the registered email address, mobile number, and bank details, and filed a fraudulent revised income tax return. This enabled them to obtain an additional income tax refund of approximately Rs 2.26 crore, which was transferred into a fake bank account.

Police said the investigation linked the fraud through documents obtained from multiple banks and the Income Tax Department. The probe found that the money was routed through fake bank accounts into the accounts of different companies, where commissions were deducted before cash was allegedly delivered to the principal accused.