Stepson orchestrates Rs 26L cyber fraud against man

When a 68-year-old former parking operator at Azadpur Mandi trusted his stepson to manage his finances, he had not imagined that the young man would turn that trust into betrayal.

Over four months, Shivam Sharma (25) allegedly siphoned off Rs 26.32 lakh from his father’s bank account, using a mix of digital trickery and cold calculation. Delhi Police’s Cyber Cell arrested him yesterday, after a months-long investigation that uncovered a meticulously planned cyber fraud.

Shivam, who harboured resentment over his father giving the family business to his stepbrother, allegedly plotted to siphon off his father’s savings while feigning innocence.

The investigation revealed that Shivam executed the fraud over four months. On March 23, while his father attended the last rites of his first wife, Shivam reportedly stole the SIM card linked to the victim’s bank account. He then created a fraudulent UPI ID, using it to purchase gold coins online through Amazon and Flipkart. These coins, totaling around 100 g, were hidden in packets wrapped in cloth and stashed inside a wall-mounted almirah. Authorities recovered the gold during their investigation.

Besides digital transactions, Shivam allegedly routed Rs 6 lakh in cash withdrawals through cyber cafe operators, who earned 2–10% commission for their role in the fraud. He also destroyed the SIM card and mobile phone to erase any evidence of the crime.

Despite being the mastermind, he even helped file the cyber complaint, attempting to mislead the investigation, the police said. The police used advanced cyber analytics and manual intelligence to trace the money and recover gold.

Shivam initially denied all allegations. However, prolonged questioning eventually led to his confession, confirming the premeditated nature of the fraud. Deep-rooted jealousy over family dynamics were the main reasons behind the crime, investigators said.