Delhi Police arrests two accused in connection with fake online PhD admission racket
New Delhi: Two suspects were taken into custody by Delhi Police on Saturday in relation to a fraudulent online PhD admissions scheme. Javed Khan (30) and Shahrukh Ali (29), the apprehended suspects, are Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, residents. According to investigators, Javed Khan, a computer engineer, was the leader of the ring.
Officials said that PS Cyber got a complaint about cyber financial theft. The complainant said she intended to pursue a PhD and had looked online for admittance. She contacted Javed Khan after finding his phone number on the www.literateus.com website. After being duped into the program, the complainant gave Javed a total of Rs 180,000 for a PhD admission and thesis.
She became skeptical and called the police, however, when the accused wanted more money and refused to provide any invoices. Her allegation led to the filing of a formal complaint and the start of an inquiry.
The accused’s phone logs and bank account information were acquired throughout the investigation. Police also obtained information about the disputed website from the domain provider. It was discovered that Shahrukh Ali’s and Javed Khan’s bank accounts contained the stolen money.
Since the accused had thrown away the cell phones involved in the scam, technical monitoring was carried out. The culprits were located and taken into custody from Saharanpur and Noida, Uttar Pradesh, after persistent attempts.
During questioning, accused Javed Khan revealed that he studied Computer Science (IT) Networking, according to DCP Central M. Harshavardhan. In 2022–2023, he was employed by a company that helped with online PhD admissions.
After that, he decided to start his own business and made the website www.literateus.com. According to reports, Javed tried to collaborate with many colleges but was only granted a Channel Partner letter by Glocal University in Saharanpur (UP). It is important to note that Glocal University has not been in business since July 2021 and is allegedly involved in a backdated degree fraud, according to the accused, authorities said.
Javed Khan reportedly gave many people phony, backdated honorary doctorate degrees and mailed the complainant a photocopied ID card from Glocal University. According to the authorities, co-accused Shahrukh Ali took an active role in the fake PhD admissions and was given a portion of the illegal profits. For a phony PhD course, the complainant was persuaded to pay Rs 180,000.
The accused was found to have one cell phone and a Glocal University payment receipt. On a phone that was confiscated from Shahrukh Ali, incriminating WhatsApp conversations were discovered. From the accused’s home, phony university payment receipts were found.
According to authorities, Javed Khan was taken from a de-addiction facility in Noida, and both of the suspects are drug users. 15 people have been defrauded under the guise of PhD admittance, according to police investigations.
