Four people, including a Nigerian national, were arrested by the Cyber Crimes Unit of Hyderabad for cheating a pharmaceutical researcher and manufacturer out of Rs 87 lakh. The accused are Vincent Ibhaduwede, Shakil, Arvind Mishra, and Saifullah Khan. The police have registered a case under the Indian Penal Code.
The main accused, Christopher, is still at large. He posed as ‘Dr Arthur Williams’ of Lexo Pharma company in the US and contacted the complainant in February 2023. He proposed a business opportunity involving the supply of 2,000 packets of ‘cissus populnea’ stems each month to treat venereal, stomach, and skin infections.
The complainant believed the offer was genuine. To establish credibility, he was asked to purchase three packets of Cissus Populnea stems as a sample from a fictitious supplier named Monika Sharma. He transferred Rs 1.4 lakh into the bank account of a fictitious company, Siya Enterprises, linked to Monika. These samples were handed over to a Delhi-based African national named Danny.
The fraudsters then persuaded the complainant to make a payment of Rs 87 lakh into Siya Enterprises between March and May 2023 for the 2,000 packets. The amount was withdrawn by Shakil and Mishra and handed to Vincent, who sent it to Christopher. Saifullah created a bank account under Siya Enterprises using forged documents.
When the accused stopped responding to messages and emails, the pharma firm owner lodged a police complaint on May 16.
