Operating from a high-rise in Pune’s tech hub, a slick front called “Magnatel BPS and Consultants LLP” masked one of India’s biggest recent international cyber frauds. Over 120 employees, fake identities, VPN tools, and daily call scripts duped thousands of Americans through “digital arrest” scams. What began as a tip-off has unraveled into a million-dollar deception that now stretches from Kharadi to California.
A High-Rise Hub of Deception: The Raid That Exposed the Scam
Acting on a confidential tip, over 150 Pune police personnel descended on Pride Icon, a commercial tower in Kharadi, around 10 PM on Saturday. What they uncovered was a fully operational fake call centre masquerading as a legitimate BPO under the name Magnatel BPS and Consultants LLP.
Spread across the ninth floor, the operation included 123 employees—111 men and 12 women—who had been working since July 2024, making scam calls to US citizens. Police seized 64 laptops, 41 mobile phones, and routers worth ₹13.74 lakh, along with sensitive digital data and software including VPNs, caller ID spoofers, and databases containing the personal information of lakhs of Americans.
The raid, which lasted nearly ten hours, was led by ACP Ganesh Ingle and senior inspectors Swapnali Shinde, Shabbir Sayyad, and Ajay Waghmare. A formal FIR was filed Sunday morning under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the IT Act.
The ‘Digital Arrest’ Modus Operandi: A Script of Fear and Fraud
Police investigations reveal a sophisticated yet sinister script used by the accused: Staffers, posing as US police or federal agents, would call unsuspecting Americans on WhatsApp using VPNs to disguise their origin.
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Victims were told their Amazon accounts were involved in illegal activities such as drug trafficking or money laundering. Threatened with imminent digital arrest, victims were coerced into buying Amazon gift cards, whose details were then relayed to handlers, converted into dollars, and laundered via hawala channels and cryptocurrency wallets.
The call centre reportedly received data of over one lakh US citizens per day, potentially purchased from dark web vendors or previous data breaches. The daily turnover from this operation is estimated at $30,000, with total frauds running into millions of dollars.
The Recruiters, the Rent, and the Reality of India’s Scam Economy
The masterminds identified so far include Sarjitsingh Shekhawat (26), Abhishek Pande (29), Shrimay Paresh Shah(31), Lakshman Shekhawat, and Aaron Christian (29), mostly from Ahmedabad and Rajasthan. Police are searching for others, including Karan Shekhawat, Ketan Ramani, and Sanjay More.
Most staffers were 12th pass or less, primarily from northern and northeastern India, chosen for their ability to speak fluent English. Recruited through personal referrals, they were paid ₹25,000/month in cash and told to stay silent about the nature of their work. The entire office floor was rented for ₹8 lakh per month, signaling the scale and investment behind the operation.
Investigators are probing how the masterminds conceptualized and set up the centre, sourced foreign data, and trained employees in deceptive tactics. Many suspects are believed to be former BPO employees who used their experience in customer service to pivot into cybercrime.
Global Implications and the Road Ahead
This bust is more than just another call centre scam. It highlights a growing transnational cybercrime economy that exploits regulatory loopholes, digital tools, and economic desperation to prey on vulnerable populations across borders.
US authorities are likely to get involved as evidence emerges of cross-border financial fraud and identity theft. Meanwhile, Indian police continue to unravel bank accounts, crypto wallets, and hawala networks used to launder the scammed money.