ED arrests man in ₹2.6 crore 'Digital Arrest' cyber fraud case

It matters to citizens as it details a large-scale 'Digital Arrest' cyber fraud network involving significant financial losses and cross-state criminal activity.

Who it concerns: The document concerns Mukesh Kumar Pukhraj Jain (the arrested individual), the victim (a resident of Goa), the Directorate of Enforcement (ED), the Hon’ble Special Court (PMLA), Goa, and the Cyber Crime Police Station, North Goa. It also references a broader network of companies, brokers, and victims across over twenty States and Union Territories.

What the ED says it did

• Mukesh Kumar Pukhraj Jain was arrested on 16.10.2026 under PMLA, 2002.
• The arrest relates to a 'Digital Arrest' cyber fraud where a victim was coerced into transferring approximately Rs. 2.6 Crore.
• The Special Court (PMLA), Goa remanded the accused to ED custody up to 19.10.2026.
• The accused is the sixth person arrested in this specific case.
• ED investigation revealed a network of companies used to receive fraud proceeds, convert them to cash, and then to foreign currency.
• The network's accounts appear in over 300 victim complaints and more than 160 FIRs across over twenty States and Union Territories, with reported losses of about Rs. 417 Crore.
• The accused worked as an RTGS agent, arranging bank credits for the network in exchange for cash and commission.
• The accused admitted in PMLA statements that he knew the money came from cyber frauds.
• The accused destroyed records and mobile handsets after ED searches and gave evasive replies during his statement.
• Further investigation is under progress.

Also in the document

• The victim was kept on a video call and made to believe she was under criminal investigation.
• The accused did not appear on the date fixed for his statement initially.
• The network involved converting funds into foreign currency.