New Delhi: Six men, including two Nigerian nationals, were arrested for running a fake lottery and gift scam. They posed as foreign women online, befriended victims, and claimed to send gifts. Victims then received calls from fake airport officials demanding money to release the parcels. The scammers often used UK-based phone numbers to appear legitimate. Another method involved contacting people on social media, claiming they won a lottery and needed to pay a fee to claim the prize. These tactics convinced many victims to transfer money, believing they were dealing with genuine individuals and organisations based abroad.The accused were identified as Shedrack Onainor (29), Vikas (25), Shahid Raza (45), Shahrukh Khan (23), Rakesh (22), and Sunday John (40). They were arrested from multiple places in the city. Raza was nabbed from West Delhi, and based on his information, a raid was conducted in South Delhi’s Khanpur, from where Onainor, a Nigerian national, was nabbed. Based on his information, other accused individuals, including John, another Nigerian national, were apprehended. Raza is the father-in-law of Shahrukh.Onainor arrived in India on a medical visa in 2013, which expired in 2018. He stayed illegally and, with Nigerian associates, scammed Indian citizens through fake lotteries, gifts, and parcels. He collected money via Indian accomplices Raza and Khan, who also provided bank accounts for fraudulent transactions.“Raza, uneducated and previously employed in Saudi Arabia, joined the racket around 7–8 years ago for a 15% commission. With his son-in-law Shahrukh, he collected ATM cards and withdrew cash for Nigerian handlers. Khan joined 6–7 years ago. He used UPI IDs to transfer defrauded funds,” Deputy commissioner of police (crime) Vikram Singh said.Vikas opened multiple bank accounts using a fake address in Delhi and handed over ATM cards and SIMs to Rakesh, who then forwarded them to Raza and Khan. Vikas received 3% of each transaction.Vikas’s brother Rakesh helped manipulate Aadhaar details to open accounts, receiving a 2% commission. John arrived on a business visa in 2023, which expired in 2024. He illegally remained in India, collecting defrauded funds across Delhi/NCR and splitting them with Nigerian co-conspirators.“Onainor, along with associates, led the fraud by luring victims online. Once victims transferred funds, Shedrack coordinated with Indian handlers for the collection and distribution of cash. Rakesh and his brother Vikas opened 18–20 fake bank accounts in Vikas’s name. They altered Aadhaar addresses to Delhi, obtained SIMs, and used forged documents. An associate helped update Aadhaar without verification,” police said.
