Mumbai: Sion police bust cyber fraud call centre in Delhi

The Sion police have busted a Delhibased call centre involved in a sophisticated cyber fraud racket where seven individuals were allegedly employed to scam victims through bogus credit card schemes The scam came to light after a Sion resident lost over Rs 45 lakh and promptly lodged a complaint Following a detailed investigation police arrested the alleged mastermind and recovered the entire lost amountManjeet Singh squatting the mastermind of the scam in the custody of the Sion police PicBy Special ArrangementAccording to the complainant Mayuresh Shinde name changed 31 he received a call from an unknown number The caller posing as a bank manager confirmed several of Shindersquos personal details mdash including his parentsrsquo names credit card number and PAN mdash which made the call appear legitimate Believing it was a genuine call from the bank Shinde let his guard down The caller then offered to increase his credit card limitComplainant loses Rs 45 lakh after a call from fraudsters He quickly reports the incident on the cybercrime portal IllustrationsUday MohiteWhen Shinde agreed he was sent an OTP which he shared Moments later Rs 454717 was fraudulently debited from his bank account Shinde immediately reported the incident on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal 1930 and later registered a formal complaint with the Sion policeFollowing the registration of the FIR the Sion police launched an investigation with the cyber cell team led by API Dattaray Khade conducting a technical analysis The trail led them to Faridabad Uttar Pradesh mdash the location linked to the SIM card used in the fraud ldquoThe number through which the victim was contacted was traced to Faridabad It was registered under the name Krishna Bhatia but we later learned he had sold the SIM card to one Manjeet Singh for Rs 5000 to Rs 6000rdquo said API KhadeThe victim then approaches the Sion police who eventually trace the accused an Uttar Pradesh native to a call centre office in DelhiSingh a native of Saharanpur Uttar Pradesh was eventually traced to Delhi When the police team reached the location they discovered a fullfledged office setup where eight individuals mdash including Singh mdash were operating the bogus call centreThe operationThe call centre reportedly the brainchild of Singh had been set up on May 2 Employees were hired specifically for its operations with roles that included making cold calls analysing data and contacting potential victims Each was offered a monthly salary of R15000 for their work in the fraudulent schemeWhile Singh acted as the ldquobossrdquo of the operation two unidentified associates were responsible for siphoning money from victimsrsquo bank accounts and handling hawala transactions ldquoThe two associates were alerted after Singhrsquos arrest and are currently absconding We are tracking themrdquo said API Khade He added that the call centre employees have been issued notices and are being questioned as part of the ongoing investigationThe complainantrsquos money is recovered from Singh who is currently in police custodyDuring the course of the investigation police discovered 16 additional complaints filed on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal NCRP by individuals from across the countryIdentical modusldquoThe phone numbers used in those 16 cases match this one and the modus operandi is identicalrdquo said API Khade ldquoWe will now streamline these complaints as part of a consolidated investigation and obtain the arrested accusedrsquos bank statements to trace the transaction historyrdquo Singh was arrested on Monday and has been remanded in police custody until June 7 Investigators plan to interrogate him further to uncover the full extent of the operation and identify others involved in the scam Fortunately for the victim the police successfully recovered all his money ldquoThe money will be handed back to the victim once the necessary formalities are completedrdquo confirmed a senior police officialldquoNo bank directly calls customers to offer an increase or decrease in their credit card limit They will never ask for OTPs or block cards without official intimation If citizens receive such calls they should either visit the bank branch in person or use the branchrsquos official email ID to verify the information In case of any suspicious activity or financial loss please dial 1930 mdash the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal mdash or visit the nearest police stationrdquo advised the senior police officialIn this case the police commended the complainantrsquos prompt action in first registering the complaint on the NCRP and then approaching the police station which helped in the swift investigation and recovery of the lost money