Panchkula police have arrested a Mohali-based man in connection with an alleged online trading fraud of Rs 11 lakh, in a case that began with a WhatsApp work-from-home offer, Mirror Now reported on Tuesday, October 27.

Source: Mirror Now

According to police, the victim, a Panchkula woman, was contacted on WhatsApp in January 2026 by a person offering a work-from-home opportunity centred on online share trading. She was guided to install a fraudulent mobile application and upload her personal details, and over the following months transferred funds into various bank accounts as instructed.

The app was designed to display artificial growth and eventually showed her investment balance exceeding Rs 52 lakh. When she tried to withdraw her funds, the scammers allegedly demanded an additional Rs 6 lakh, citing taxes and security charges, and threatened to forfeit her entire balance if she did not comply. After she transferred the additional amount in April 2026, the application stopped functioning and she realised she had been defrauded of Rs 11 lakh in total.

Complaint, arrest and custody

A formal complaint was lodged on October 17 at the cyber crime police station in Sector 20, Panchkula, and a case was registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections pertaining to criminal breach of trust, cheating and criminal conspiracy.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Amrinder Singh said the bank accounts used to move the victim's money were linked to a firm based in Mohali. The accused, Gurvinder Singh, a native of Ambala, was arrested in the Raipur Rani area of Panchkula on Sunday. During initial questioning, he allegedly admitted to providing his firm's bank accounts to his associates specifically to receive proceeds from cyber fraud in exchange for a commission, police said.

Following his arrest, Gurvinder Singh was remanded to five days of police custody. Police said they are tracing the flow of the stolen funds and identifying other members of the network, and the investigation is ongoing.