Mumbai ATM fraud: Nalasopara man held, Rs 7,500 cash recovered

Kandivali Police in Mumbai have arrested a 47-year-old man allegedly involved in a series of ATM card-swapping frauds.

The accused has been identified as Mohammed Arif Mohammed Ali Sheikh, a resident of Nalasopara West. Police said he was arrested on September 27 and that Rs 7,500 in cash was recovered from him.

Modus operandi

According to the police, the accused allegedly targeted ATMs where cash had run out or transactions were failing. He would wait near such ATMs and watch for potential victims.

When an ATM failed to dispense cash, the accused would allegedly offer to help the victim. He would take the victim's card on the pretext of assisting them and, using sleight of hand, allegedly replace it with another card he had kept with him.

Police said the accused would then leave the spot and use the victim's card at another ATM to withdraw cash.

Woman files complaint

The case came to light after Sunita Harish Ghagda, 56, approached the Kandivali police, alleging that an unidentified man had distracted her while she was attempting to withdraw money from an SBI ATM on SV Road at around 10 am on September 7.

The accused allegedly swapped her debit card, following which Rs 19,000 was withdrawn from her bank account. Based on her complaint, a case was registered at Kandivali Police Station under Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Investigation

The investigating officer and his team examined footage from 50 to 60 CCTV cameras. Acting on information received from a confidential source, the team traced the accused to the Nalasopara area and detained him on September 27.

Police sources said the accused is suspected to be involved in more than 30 ATM card-swapping cases.

Police team

The operation was carried out under the guidance of ACP Shashikumar Meena, DCP Sandeep Ghuge and ACP Santosh Dhanwate, along with Kandivali police station senior officers Karan Sonkawade and Shekhar Shinde.

The investigation team comprised PSI Sandeep Gorede, ASI Gorkhanath Pawar, ASI Mahadev Nawge and other police personnel.