Delhi Police have uncovered an alleged cyber-fraud supply chain in which fake medical camps were used to collect Aadhaar and voter-ID details from unsuspecting people before those identities were used to procure e-SIMs for digital-arrest scams.
Two men from Mathura, Jitendra Singh, 29, and Brajesh Kumar, 21, have been arrested in connection with the operation.
Police say the accused initially acted as middlemen between people willing to sell SIM cards and cybercriminals seeking to buy them. They allegedly later shifted to a more profitable model by creating their own supply of SIMs using identity documents collected at fake health camps.
The investigation began after a Delhi resident reported losing ₹1.64 crore during a two-week digital-arrest scam.
Fake Health Camps Allegedly Used To Harvest KYC Data
According to police, the accused organised small medical camps at locations across Uttar Pradesh, including Ayodhya, Mathura and Lucknow.
The camps reportedly offered basic services such as blood-pressure and blood-sugar checks.
Visitors were allegedly asked to provide copies of Aadhaar cards and voter IDs as part of the registration process.
Police say those documents were later used to procure e-SIMs.
The accused allegedly employed a fake nurse and kept basic medicines at the camps to make the operation appear legitimate.
For people attending what appeared to be an ordinary health check-up, handing over an identity document may not have seemed suspicious.
That trust is what investigators say the operation exploited.
Once identity information had been collected, it could allegedly be reused for SIM activation without the knowledge of the original document holder.
SIM Brokerage Allegedly Became Direct Procurement
Police said Jitendra Singh and Brajesh Kumar initially worked as intermediaries on social-media platforms including Facebook.
They allegedly connected SIM sellers with buyers involved in cyber-fraud operations.
According to investigators, they would purchase SIM cards for around ₹700 to ₹800 and resell them for more than ₹2,000.
The margin appears to have encouraged them to bypass sellers altogether.
Police allege the pair began setting up fake medical camps to gather identity documents themselves and then used those documents to obtain e-SIMs directly.
That shift is significant because it shows how cybercrime supply chains can become more organised over time.
Instead of simply buying already activated SIM cards from willing sellers, the accused allegedly created a system for generating fresh identities and telecom connections.
₹1.64 Crore Digital Arrest Case Exposed The Network
The alleged operation came under police scrutiny after Shriniwas Singh, a Delhi resident, reported losing ₹1.64 crore in a digital-arrest scam.
According to police, he was kept under coercion and threats for around two weeks.
During that period, he allegedly made six RTGS transfers to six different bank accounts.
Investigators then began analysing the mobile numbers and device-related data used during the scam.
That technical trail led them towards the Vrindavan-Mathura region of Uttar Pradesh.
Police say further investigation revealed a suspected network involved in procuring, activating and supplying e-SIMs used for cybercrime.
Jitendra Singh and Brajesh Kumar were subsequently arrested in Mathura.
Three mobile phones and several SIM cards were seized.
Identity Theft Became Telecom Infrastructure
The case shows how stolen personal data can move from one type of crime into another.
The Aadhaar or voter-ID document collected at a fake health camp was not necessarily the final target.
Instead, the data allegedly became a resource for creating telecom identities.
Those SIMs could then be supplied to criminals conducting digital-arrest scams or other forms of online fraud.
This creates a separation between the real owner of an identity document and the person ultimately using the mobile connection.
For investigators, that makes attribution more difficult.
A number involved in a cyber-fraud call may technically be linked to an innocent person who never knowingly obtained or used the SIM.
That is why SIM procurement and KYC abuse have become increasingly important parts of cybercrime investigations.
Why e-SIMs Matter In Fraud Operations
An e-SIM is a digital version of a conventional SIM card.
Instead of inserting a physical card into a phone, the subscriber profile is downloaded electronically.
The technology is legitimate and widely used.
But if criminals obtain e-SIM profiles through fraudulent KYC or stolen identity documents, they can gain access to mobile numbers without using a physical SIM registered honestly in their own names.
For cyber-fraud groups, that can make it easier to create and rotate numbers used for WhatsApp calls, impersonation and other scams.
The technology itself is not the problem.
The risk arises when identity verification is manipulated or when genuine documents are reused without consent.
Police Probe Wider Network
Police say at least 20 complaints on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal have been linked to the suspected operation.
Investigators are now examining whether additional SIM sellers, buyers, telecom intermediaries or cyber-fraud operators were connected to the network.
The two arrested men have been booked for cheating and offences related to forged documents or electronic records.
The wider investigation is likely to focus on how many identities were harvested, how many e-SIMs were activated and where those telecom connections were ultimately used.
The case also exposes a broader cybercrime risk: personal data stolen through an apparently harmless offline activity can later become part of digital fraud infrastructure.
A fake medical camp may look far removed from a digital-arrest scam.
Investigators now allege that, in this case, the two were directly connected.
