CBI busts illegal call centre used to defraud foreigners at Igatpuri

The agency’s probe followed a cyber cheating case registered on Friday against six residents of Mumbai and unknown bank officials whose suspected roles in assisting the racket are being ascertained by the agency

MUMBAI: The Mumbai unit of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has busted a cybercrime racket, whose operators allegedly operated an illegal call centre from the rented premises of a private resort in Igatpuri, Nashik. They allegedly duped unsuspecting victims in the United States of America, Canada, and other countries. The fraudsters, five of whom were arrested Saturday, posed as customer care employees of a popular multinational e-commerce site, CBI officials said on Sunday.

CBI busts illegal call centre used to defraud foreigners at Igatpuri

The agency’s probe followed a cyber cheating case registered on Friday against six residents of Mumbai and unknown bank officials whose suspected roles in assisting the racket are being ascertained by the agency. It was alleged in the CBI’s First Information Report that the accused entered into a criminal conspiracy with each other and other unknown persons to commit financial fraud by impersonation and making deceptive calls from the illegal call centre, posing as members of support service call centres of an e-commerce site.

The fraudsters recruited around 60 operators at the call centre and tasked them with contacting potential victims or dialers, verifying details as verifiers, and finally closing the victim as closers, the officials said. “The accused persons were cheating citizens of the US, Canada and other countries and fraudulently obtaining proceeds of crime via gift cards and cryptocurrency,” a CBI official said, adding that the latter is not recognised as a legal tender in India.

The five men arrested by the CBI were Vishal Yadav, Shebaz, Durgesh, Abhay Raj alias Raja and Sameer alias Kalia alias Sohail. The agency is trying to find out the roles of other accomplices, if any, officials said. The agency is also trying to deduce the modus operandi employed by the racket to cheat its victims and the quantum of the fraud so far, officials said.