Football betting scam: Chinese fraudster dupes Gujarat users of Rs 1,400 crore in 9 days

Many people are engaging in online scams, causing significant financial losses and distress for those who fall victim.

Recently, the police in Gujarat uncovered a case of digital fraud involving a Chinese man and his associates from Gujarat.

The group is suspected of creating a fake app for betting on football and managing to steal about Rs 1,400 crore from around 1,200 individuals in just nine days.

As per details provided by the Times of India, the mastermind behind this intricate plan is identified as Woo Uyanbe, a Chinese national hailing from the Shenzhen region.

To address this issue, the Gujarat Police formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to handle the case.

It is reported that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) first alerted about this situation in June 2022.

They discovered that the culprits were deceiving people in both Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh through a mobile app called 'Dani Data'.

The initial inquiry was started by the Agra police. Their investigation eventually led the CID's crime team to uncover the deceptive plan and its links to several individuals in northern Gujarat.

While looking into the matter, a CID officer clarified that the Chinese individual stayed in Patan and Banaskantha. In those areas, he tempted the residents by assuring them of significant riches. Later, he teamed up with his associates in Gujarat to introduce the app in May 2022. The app lured people to make bets by guaranteeing substantial profits.

Woo Uyanbe successfully manipulated individuals across a wide age spectrum, spanning from 15 to 75 years, all with a shared interest in football. His adeptness allowed him to amass a staggering average of Rs 200 crore per day, as reported by TOI.

Unfortunately, the app suddenly stopped working after only nine days.

However, by the time the case was filed, Uyanbe had already left India. In August 2022, the Gujarat police registered the first case related to the fraud. Uyanbe was charged with cheating and violating the IT Act.

Police sources mentioned in the report believe that Uyanbe is still actively running his fraudulent network from Shenzhen, using multiple apps to deceive people.