CHANDIGARH: Cyber Crime Police Station of UT Chandigarh has dismantled an elaborate ‘digital arrest’ scam operated by a syndicate based in Cambodia and other Southeast Asian countries. The investigation, under FIR No. 86 dated July 21, 2025, has led to the arrest of ten individuals across India and revealed a network defrauding Indian citizens of over ₹1,000 crore every month.
SIM Box Network Linked to Southeast Asia
The scam used SIM boxes, telecom devices that convert international VoIP calls into local GSM calls, capable of generating over 2 lakh IVR calls per day. Victims received pre-recorded calls impersonating government agencies such as TRAI, CBI, or FedEx.
Once a victim responded, scammers escalated to video calls using fake backgrounds resembling police stations. Posing as officials, they falsely accused the victims of money laundering or narcotics involvement and coerced them into transferring large sums for “safe custody.” One Chandigarh resident was cheated of ₹1.01 crore.
The syndicate recruited Indian youths via Facebook and Telegram, offering jobs to manage SIM box setups. Many were duped into flying to Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar with fake employment promises, only to be forced into scam operations—a case of cyber slavery.
Arrests, Raids, and Recovered Equipment
Under the supervision of SP (Cyber) Ms. Geetanjali Khandelwal, IPS, DSP A. Venkatesh, and Inspector Eram Rizvi, police conducted coordinated raids in Meerut, Ludhiana, and Amritsar. Ten individuals were arrested, including Parvez Chauhan (33), Shubham Mehra alias Sunny (25), and Saroj Kumar (19).
Recovered items included:
SIM boxes (Dinstar)
Over 400 SIM cards
11 mobile phones
Laptops, modems, and routers
Banking analysis uncovered ₹36.98 crore frozen across several accounts linked to the suspects. The arrested individuals confessed to procuring, distributing, and activating SIMs in bulk and coordinating with handlers abroad.
Between 2022 and 2025, approximately 3,000 Indian citizens have been rescued from such scam centres across Southeast Asia.
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Public Advisory:
No police officer will ever ask for money via call or WhatsApp.
Ignore any video call claiming legal action.
Do not share Aadhaar or OTPs; secure biometrics.
Report cyber crimes via 1930 or at cybercrime.gov.in.
Authorities are collaborating with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre and international agencies to trace the full network and freeze global assets.