Panchkula police arrest alleged mastermind of Rs 2.26-crore Income Tax refund fraud

A BTech graduate allegedly used a UK-based NRI's IT return to pull off a Rs 2.26 crore cyber heist in Panchkula. The Cyber Crime Police of Panchkula has arrested the alleged mastermind of an inter-state cyber fraud racket accused of fraudulently obtaining an Income Tax refund of Rs 2.26 crore by hacking the e-filing account of a UK-based NRI from Panchkula. The accused, Dalip B.R. alias Dalip Rajgoda, a BTech graduate in Mechanical Engineering, was arrested from Karnataka and remanded in eight-day police custody by a local court. Police recovered a laptop and a mobile phone from his possession. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime and Traffic) Amarinder Singh said investigators have traced transactions worth around Rs 13 crore through nine bank accounts linked to the accused. Police said Dalip is already facing eight cybercrime cases registered in Bengaluru. He was also arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in 2025 in another case and allegedly kept changing his location after securing bail to evade arrest. During questioning, he claimed to be engaged in the coconut trade. The case was registered in 2024 on the complaint of an NRI originally from Panchkula, who has been living in the United Kingdom for nearly 50 years. The complainant had filed his Income Tax Return for the financial year 2023-24 and received his legitimate refund. Police said cyber criminals later hacked his Income Tax e-filing account, changed the registered email address, mobile number and bank account details, and filed a fake revised Income Tax Return in his name. Based on the forged return, they allegedly secured an additional refund of around Rs 2.26 crore, which was transferred to a fake bank account. During the investigation, police examined records obtained from banks and the Income Tax Department and tracked the flow of money. Investigators said the refund amount was routed through multiple fake bank accounts before being transferred to accounts of different companies. After deducting commissions, the remaining money was allegedly delivered to the mastermind.Story continues below this ad Police had earlier arrested a co-accused, Kanhaiya Lal, and recovered Rs 5 lakh in cash from his possession. Acting on information gathered during his interrogation and technical evidence, the cyber crime team tracked down and arrested Dalip in Karnataka. Police said they will examine the seized laptop and mobile phone for digital evidence. Teams are conducting raids in multiple states to trace other accused and are also investigating the alleged use of forged documents to open fake bank accounts.