Mumbai Police arrested four men for duping people with a “black dollar” scam worth ₹24.7 lakh. They used chemicals and fake notes to trick victims. One accused has a criminal background.
Mumbai | July 10, 2025: In a scam straight out of a crime thriller, four men have been arrested in Mumbai for conning people by showing black paper as US dollars and offering to “convert” them using a chemical solution. The accused were nabbed from a hotel in Mankhurd, where they had been operating the fraudulent racket.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Afzal Syed, Rais Syed, Adil Khan, and Abidur Shah. According to police sources, the gang would lure victims by claiming they could exchange a large sum of US dollars coated in black ink — which, they claimed, could be restored using a special chemical.
During a staged demonstration, the accused would dip a few blackened notes into a solution, revealing real US dollars underneath — a trick to gain the victim’s trust. But in reality, most of the stack contained only black paper, not currency.
On July 7, the gang convinced the complainants to hand over ₹30,000 in exchange for a promised bundle of dollars. Once they got the money, the accused vanished without delivering any currency. Realizing they had been duped, the victims approached Mankhurd Police Station, after which the case was transferred to the Crime Branch for investigation.
Investigations revealed that the group had used the same black dollar trick to cheat several others across Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, and other parts of the state. The total value of fraud is estimated to be around ₹24.7 lakh.
During the raid, the police seized:
- Black paper bundles resembling $42 worth of fake currency
- Two genuine $1 notes
- Six aluminium bottles filled with chemical solutions
- Six mobile phones
- ₹30,400 in Indian currency
Police also found that Afzal Ali Syed, one of the main accused, had a prior criminal record under sections 420 (cheating) and 34 (common intent) at Nagpada Police Station.
The accused are currently in custody, and further investigation is underway to trace other victims and accomplices involved in the racket.
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