Alappuzha: Two Taiwanese nationals were arrested in Gujarat for defrauding a doctor couple in Cherthala of Rs 7.65 crore under the pretext of stock market investment. The Taiwanese nationals are identified as Wang Chun-Wei (Sumok, 26) and Shen-Wei Ho (Krish, 35). 

The Alappuzha Crime Branch, with the assistance of cyber police, traced the suspects and found that Ahmedabad police had already apprehended them and detained them at Sabarmati Jail. The investigation team took the duo into custody and brought them to Alappuzha on Monday.  

The accused will be presented before the Cherthala First Class Magistrate Court on Wednesday. The district Crime Branch team will seek custody of the accused for further questioning. 

The Taiwanese nationals’ involvement in the scam was uncovered after police interrogated Karnataka native Bhagawan Ram D Patel (22) and Rajasthan native Nirmal Jain (22), who were arrested earlier along with three Malayalis.

Bhagawan Ram communicated with the doctor couple through WhatsApp and lured them by sharing investment and profit details through a group chat. He later send them a link to transfer money. Nirmal, who constantly maintained communication with international fraudsters, converted the stolen money into cryptocurrency. 

When the couple demanded their money back, the gang threatened them and asked for an additional Rs 2 crore. This prompted the couple to file a complaint with the Cherthala police. As the scam involved over Rs 5 crore, the case was later transferred to the Crime Branch.