Police seized Rs 3.54 lakh in cash, 10 mobile phones worth around Rs 5 lakh, 13 ATM cards, 23 SIM cards, computer equipment, a laptop, a printer and two four-wheelers worth around Rs 20 lakh. Varanasi: Ghazipur Cyber Crime Police busted an alleged fake call centre operating an online fraud racket through Facebook advertisements offering jobs abroad and arrested three persons on Thursday.
The arrested accused have been identified as Sohan Ram, 45, Surya Prakash Arora, 26, and Faizal Khan alias Sunny, 29, all residents of Ghazipur. Nearly Rs 15 lakh was allegedly withdrawn in cash between Aug and Sept. Police said the main accused, Sohan Ram, allegedly procured SIM cards and mule bank accounts in Mumbai and Delhi using the identities of poor people, rickshaw pullers and roadside SIM sellers by paying them Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500.
A complainant approached the Ghazipur Cyber Crime Police Station alleging that unidentified persons had, on the pretext of vehicle breakdowns and other excuses, got money earned through cyber fraud transferred into his Common Service Centre (CSC) account, according to police. Superintendent of Police Iraj Raja said police collected evidence and, with the help of the surveillance cell, arrested the three accused. He said they were operating in an organised and planned manner. Police said calls made to the advertised numbers were received at the fake call centre allegedly run by Surya. Police said the fraud money was routed through CSC centres using QR codes and withdrawn in cash or through ATMs by Surya Prakash Arora.
The operation was led by inspector Mohd Rahmatullah Khan. Soon after, the complainant’s CSC account and other bank accounts were either frozen or marked under lien. Some women had been hired at the centre after being misled about the nature of the work. They received calls from victims, while Surya allegedly lured job seekers with false promises and sent them mule account details and QR codes provided by Sohan. Faizal Khan was also allegedly used to withdraw money in exchange for a commission. Police are examining the recovered SIM cards and documents to ascertain how many people were cheated. A report will also be sent to the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs.