Shahjahanpur GST Scam: Three Arrested, ₹10.77 Crore Fraud Exposed

Shahjahanpur Police Arrest Three for GST Evasion Through Bogus Firms, ₹10.77 Crore Fraud Detected

Shahjahanpur: Police have arrested three men accused of orchestrating a major GST evasion racket using fake firms and fabricated documents. Investigators say the group siphoned off ₹10.77 crore in GST by providing traders with illegal ITC benefits. Authorities also suspect the involvement of certain banking personnel in enabling the fraudulent activity.

The case surfaced on 28 May 2025, when Assistant Commissioner of State Tax Bhavana Chandra filed an FIR at Roza police station. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Inspector Virendra Singh of the Gangster Cell was formed to handle the probe.

Fraud Built Through Social Media Loan Lures and Fake Rent Agreements

Police say the gang targeted individuals through social media advertisements offering quick loans. After gaining trust, they collected personal documents—Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, electricity bills—and created fake rent agreements in their names.
Using these documents, the suspects registered shell GST firms and opened bank accounts linked to the fabricated entities.

The bogus firms were then used to pass on Input Tax Credit (ITC) to traders, with the gang earning commissions ranging between 5% and 20%. The accused admitted they had been running the operation for months and had already evaded ₹10.77 crore.

Three Accused Arrested; Large Cache of Fake Documents Seized

On Friday morning, police received intelligence that the suspects were travelling to Lucknow to consult a lawyer. At around 6:45 a.m., a black SUV was intercepted near Attsalya Pul.

The arrested individuals are:

• Gaurav Yadav, resident of White House Apartments, Sector 11, Rohini, New Delhi

• Deepak, resident of Samaypur Badli, New Delhi

• Siddharth Pandey, resident of Nawabganj, Prayagraj

During the raid, officers recovered forged documents, digital devices, hard drives, CPUs, ATM cards, mobile phones and pen drives. All three were produced before the court and later remanded to judicial custody.

Police to Trace Traders and Bank Employees Linked to the Fraud

The SP said authorities will now investigate whether traders and bank officials knowingly supported the scam.
Forensic experts are analysing the seized mobile phones, banking records, rent agreements and financial trails to map the entire network.

Officials caution that similar operations may be active in other districts, and delayed detection could result in substantial revenue loss.

Experts Warn of Increasing Complexity in Digital Financial Fraud

Industry experts say the case highlights the evolving sophistication of tax-evasion networks, which now exploit social media, identity theft and fake firms to bypass GST regulations.

Investigators are tracking every individual connected to the gang and intend to dismantle the entire operation as part of an ongoing crackdown on GST fraud and document forgery across the state.

Cases like this show how crucial robust financial systems, reliable documentation and compliance monitoring have become in the digital age. Whether a business manages domestic operations or plans long-term expansion, consistent financial discipline and structured governance are essential.

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