A police officer in Delhi lost Rs 35,000 last year after his debit card became lodged in an ATM located in Paschim Vihar. Following a deceptive helpline’s instructions, he fell victim to a scheme that ultimately exposed a group of fraudsters responsible for over 50 fraudulent activities.
On September 27, 2025, Sub-Inspector Avtar Singh visited an ATM near his residence in Outer Delhi’s Paschim Vihar area, where he inserted his debit card. Unfortunately, the card became stuck, and despite his efforts to retrieve it, he was unsuccessful. Noticing a white sheet with a helpline number affixed to the ATM, he decided to call it, as reported by an investigating officer.
The number he called belonged to Ravi Kumar Bharti, who had been apprehended in 2022 for orchestrating an ATM card theft operation. Avtar soon found himself speaking with Roshan Kumar, an associate of Ravi’s, who pretended to be a bank representative.
Roshan informed Avtar that the card was trapped due to a technical issue and advised him to re-enter his PIN. When this did not resolve the situation, Roshan instructed him to return home, assuring him that his card would be sent back to him.
Allegedly, one of Ravi’s accomplices had applied a strong adhesive inside the ATM slot to prevent customers from retrieving their cards. This tactic, along with fake helpline numbers posted on ATMs and callers impersonating bank officials, formed the core strategy of the gang.
While Avtar was prompted to enter his PIN again, a gang member was observing and recording it. After Avtar left the ATM, the group retrieved the card, used the PIN, and withdrew Rs 35,000 from his account. Avtar later received a notification indicating that the money had been debited, but his card was never returned. Subsequently, he lodged a complaint, leading to the registration of an FIR at the Paschim Vihar East police station.
The initial investigation quickly led to the arrests of Roshan Kumar and Pintu Kumar, who subsequently implicated Ravi Kumar Bharti as the leader of the operation. Ravi, 36, originally from Gaya district in Bihar, had moved to Delhi in 2018 to work in a hotel, where he met Roshan, who shared a similar background.
Roshan introduced Ravi to Pintu Kumar, who lived with him in South Delhi’s Neb Sarai area, along with others from their village. Understanding the inner workings of ATMs, Roshan proposed a scheme, which Ravi meticulously detailed in a step-by-step guide.
Between 2018 and 2025, the gang executed over 50 scams, victimizing at least 22 individuals in the capital. Although Ravi and his accomplices were arrested in 2022, they managed to secure bail and returned to Bihar. However, dissatisfied with their earnings, they returned to Delhi in 2025 to continue their fraudulent activities, with Avtar Singh being one of their victims.
A police team led by Inspector Shivraj Singh Bisht, under the guidance of ACP Ramesh Chander Lamba, utilized CCTV footage, technical data, and local intelligence to track down the suspects. A significant lead placed Ravi in the Rajpur Khurd area of Chhattarpur, where the Inter-State Cell of the Crime Branch apprehended him recently.
Authorities have stated that Ravi has been involved in at least seven previous criminal cases and is now connected to more than 50 incidents of ATM fraud and attempted fraud. So far, nine victims have been identified, resulting in four FIRs and five complaints across various police precincts.
