GURUGRAM: Investigators say a loosely knit but far-reaching cybercrime network stretching from Gurugram to Cambodia and Dubai relied on local intermediaries, forged identities, and international handlers to siphon nearly ₹3 crore from an 82-year-old woman. Newly released details reveal how one family’s bank account became a financial conduit for a global fraud enterprise.
A Web of Criminal Connections Across Borders
Police in Delhi and Gurugram have uncovered a multinational cyber-fraud operation that they say relied on a chain of recruiters, overseas handlers and money mules in India. At the center of the investigation is Mahipal Rana, who officials allege served as a key facilitator for two cybercrime syndicates operating out of Cambodia and Dubai.
Investigators say Rana arranged travel and work visas for gang members, sending people from India to Southeast Asia to join call-center operations controlled by Chinese networks. Rana allegedly returned to India in May after spending several months abroad working with the groups. His involvement, officers say, extended beyond recruitment: he also provided his personal bank accounts to help move money extracted from victims.
The criminal network came into focus after police arrested 18 suspects, including Rana; his brother, Mitheshbhai Ramanlal Rana; and a woman identified as Kushbhu Chaudhary, who investigators allege made the threatening calls that triggered a cascading fraud.
A High-Pressure Scam Targeting the Elderly
The case began in December 2024, when an elderly resident of DLF Phase-II in Gurugram received a WhatsApp call from a woman claiming her son was in legal trouble and that his Aadhaar details were being misused in illicit transactions. According to Assistant Commissioner of Police (Cybercrime) Priyanshu Dewan, Chaudhary pressured the woman with threats of legal consequences, a tactic consistent with what cybercrime researchers describe as “fear-based coercion scams.”
Police say that after the initial call, others associated with Chaudhary assumed the identities of officers from India’s Central Bureau of Investigation. The impersonation was designed to legitimize the threats and extract large transfers in rapid succession. By the time the scheme unraveled, the woman had been duped of ₹2.9 crore.
Chaudhary, investigators say, had been deported from Cambodia in July, becoming the first overseas-based cybercrime caller to be arrested upon arrival at Delhi’s IGI Airport.
Following the Money and the Mules
Tracing the flow of funds led authorities back to Rana and his brother. According to investigators, Mitheshbhai Ramanlal Rana provided the mule account through which the stolen money moved, receiving a commission of ₹12.8 lakh. Rana himself allegedly earned about ₹39 lakh from the transaction and, over time, amassed at least ₹2 crore in commissions from the two gangs he worked with.
Police emphasize that the use of bank accounts held by local intermediaries—often recruited for modest payouts—is a hallmark of hawala-style laundering systems that underpin many cyber-enabled financial crimes in the region. These intermediaries help obscure the origin and final destination of stolen funds, complicating recovery efforts. Authorities have so far managed to freeze roughly ₹70 lakh of the victim’s money, a fraction of the total lost.
An Expanding Investigation With Global Dimensions
The case is far from closed. Investigators say several cybercriminals connected to the operation remain at large, including individuals believed to be the Chinese handlers directing the Cambodia-based network. Police expect additional arrests as they track communications, financial transfers and travel histories tied to the groups.
The revelations underscore how cybercrime in South Asia is increasingly transnational, drawing on cross-border recruitment chains and offshore operations hubs optimized to evade local law enforcement. For Indian authorities, the case has prompted renewed scrutiny of visa routes, overseas job placements and the ease with which fraudsters exploit digital platforms to target vulnerable populations.
