Hyderabad: The police has busted a six-member gang involved in online fraud. The gang which operated from Panjim gave advertisements on websites offering high rates of interests on deposits. Though investors were paid interest initially, the gang later absconded duping investors of crores.

The kingpin Phani Raj Gowda claimed to be the CMD of the Mysore-based Nishka group. A co-operative society under his management suffered losses. Several criminal cases were registered against him in Karnataka regarding this.

Phani Raj hatched a plan along with his close aide Puttaraju and his friends Mahesh Chikkaiah and R.M. Chaman and a techie named Dada Peer to set up a finance company and collect deposits from public. Phani Raj Gowda got the firm Vcan Traders registered in the name of Puttaraju and Chaman’s father-in-law.

“Initially the fraudsters paid 4 per cent interest promptly. After collecting about Rs 4 to Rs 5 crore they absconded,” said addl. DCP (Crimes) B. Srinivas Reddy.

The police arrested Ziaullah, Dada Peer, R.M. Chaman from Chitradurga. Phani Raj Gowda, Puttaraju, Chikkaiah Mahesh were held while they were going to Sakleshpur in the Hasan district of Karnataka.

About Rs 40 lakh in cash, an Innova and property documents worth about Rs 1 crore were seized.