In late night raids in Srinagar Wednesday, the Counter Intelligence Kashmir (CIK) wing of the J&K Police has claimed to have busted an ‘international racket’. At least seven people have been detained and several communication equipment seized.
After receiving technical inputs regarding the functioning of an alleged “covert call centre” engaged in fraudulent online activities targeting foreign and local nationals, the CIK-CID constituted specialised teams comprising technical experts and field operatives and carried out systematic surveillance, digital intelligence gathering and verification across multiple locations. After the initiation investigation, Police said that a key operational hub at the Industrial Area, Rangreth, Srinagar was identified.
“Individuals across multiple countries were approached through organised call operations and online phishing ads. Once a victim clicked on the advertisement, a toll-free number appeared on their screen. This toll-free number was operated by the suspects, who then deceived innocent people into providing their banking and other personal details,” one police officer said Thursday. Funds were allegedly subsequently transferred into various accounts, including mule accounts and cryptocurrency wallets. The illicit proceeds were further layered, converted, and withdrawn to conceal their origin, CIK officials said.
Seven suspects were apprehended in this raid and several digital and communication equipment — including 13 mobile phones, nine laptops, VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) systems, SIM cards and networking devices and other digital storage media have been seized.
Police said that “substantial incriminating evidence”, has been recovered from these devices, “clearly indicating a highly organised and technologically advanced criminal setup”. Officials have further stated that preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused were part of a larger, well-coordinated cybercrime syndicate with linkages extending beyond & Kashmir.
Part of the network was specifically designed to target victims in countries such as the USA, UK and Canada operating through international communication masking technologies, use of “psychological manipulation” and impersonation tactics and allegedly launder money through digital and cryptocurrency channels.
The accused, according to the police, had established a covert unregistered call centre infrastructure using VoIP-based systems, enabling them to generate international virtual numbers, mask their real location using server routing and spoofing techniques to appear as legitimate service providers.
