International fake call centre targeting foreigners busted in Delhi; 8 held

Delhi Police busted a fake international call centre in Satbari, arresting eight people for targeting foreign nationals. The mastermind, a wanted criminal, is on the run. The raid follows a larger crackdown on various cyber fraud syndicates.

Delhi Police have busted an international fake call centre operating from Satbari village in South Delhi and arrested eight people, including a woman, accused of operating a large-scale illegal call centre from a residential building and targeting foreign nationals using VoIP-based calling setups, foreign databases and forged communication tools. According to officials, the racket was being run by Sanu, a wanted criminal with past involvement in illegal activities. He fled moments before the raid and is currently absconding and a special team has been formed to trace him. During the operation, police found that the building used for the call centre was registered in the name of Sanu's younger brother, Rehan alias Tinny. The building has been sealed for further investigation, officials said. A large quantity of electronic equipment was recovered from the spot, including multiple computer systems, mobile phones, VoIP software, foreign data sets and documents used in fraudulent activities. Police said the setup was designed to resemble a legitimate international customer-support facility. The arrested accused are being questioned to ascertain the scale of the operation and their links with other cyber-fraud networks, police added.

Multi-state crackdown on cyber fraud

Earlier on November 10, the cyber cell of the Crime Branch conducted multi-state raids in Delhi, Haryana, Uttarakhand, and Punjab and cracked down on several cyber fraud syndicates. Several key masterminds of Digital Arrest and Investment Fraud rackets were arrested, and at least Rs 5 crore of cryptocurrency trail linked to Dubai-handlers was recovered. Along with this, fake firms, mule accounts, and e-commerce front operations were also uncovered during the operation. Among the arrested individuals are, Sumit Kumar, Atul Sharma of Kurukshetra, Rahul Manda of Hisar, Varun Anchal alias Lucky of Jalandhar, and Amit Kumar Singh alias Kartik of Saran have been have been arrested in different cases.

Modus Operandi and Recoveries

The Cyber Cell of the Crime Branch recovered mobile phones, SIM cards, laptops, cheque books, and three cryptocurrency wallets holding approximately 552,944 USDT (approx Rs. 5 crore) in a raid in Gurugram. The scammers used fake police and agency identities to intimidate victims into surrendering to a Digital Arrest. They also created fake investment platforms promising high returns to fish victims for investment fraud. They recruited financially weaker students, PG residents, and unemployed youngsters to open mule current accounts, using fake e-commerce companies to mask transactions and cash flow. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)