Two Delhi residents were taken into custody for allegedly running a fake firm racket to evade GST worth ₹25 crore, police said on Saturday. The case came to light after GST authorities flagged suspicious transactions and lodged a complaint, triggering a cyber-led investigation.
FIR Filed After GST Department Complaint
The arrests stem from an FIR lodged nearly two months ago by GST officials at the Sadar police station in Mainpuri against two suspected shell companies involved in large-scale tax evasion. Given the technical nature of the offence, the investigation was later transferred to the cyber police station.
Accused Identified and Taken into Custody
During the investigation, police identified the accused as Chandan Mishra (32) and Sanjeet Singh (33), both residents of Swaroop Nagar in Delhi. They were arrested on Friday. Police said Mishra has a prior criminal record and had earlier been jailed.
Devices and GST Documents Recovered
“Four mobile phones, a laptop, and documents related to 12 GST-registered firms were recovered from their possession,” said Mainpuri Superintendent of Police Ganesh Prasad Saha. A case has been registered under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 318(4) for cheating.
Modus Operandi Involved Fake Firms and Identity Misuse
Police said the duo allegedly obtained GST registrations for fake firms to carry out tax evasion running into crores of rupees. Their modus operandi involved luring poor and unsuspecting individuals with small amounts of money on the pretext of offering jobs, collecting their Aadhaar and PAN details, and opening bank accounts and GST registrations in their names.
Fake GST invoices and e-way bills were then generated to illegally claim input tax credit (ITC). According to police, Mishra handled accounting and GST-related work, while Sanjeet arranged locations for the shell firms. During questioning, the accused allegedly admitted to creating fake GST registrations and e-way bills for around 150 firms.
Probe Continues, More Arrests Possible
“GST officials submitted an application stating that fake companies were registered on a large scale using fraudulent GST numbers to evade tax liability,” SP Saha said.
He added that the investigation is ongoing to identify and apprehend others linked to the racket. “Strict action will be taken against anyone else found to be involved in the GST evasion network,” he said.
Source: TOI