Srinagar, March 19 – The Counter-Intelligence Kashmir (CIK) wing of the Jammu and Kashmir Police announced on Thursday that it had busted a sophisticated international cyber fraud racket and apprehended seven suspects.
According to a statement from CIK, in a major success, the Counter-Intelligence Kashmir uncovered a highly sophisticated international cyber fraud network and arrested the suspects in Srinagar.
“CIK-CID received various technical and credible inputs regarding the functioning of covert call centres engaged in fraudulent online activities targeting foreign/local nationals,” the statement said.
According to the information shared, CIK promptly constituted specialized teams comprising technical experts and field operatives and carried out systematic surveillance, digital intelligence gathering and verification across multiple locations, ultimately identifying a key operational hub at the Industrial Area, Rangreth, Srinagar.
In furtherance of this, the CIK teams conducted swift and well-coordinated raids in different parts of Srinagar city. During the raids, seven suspects were apprehended, and a large quantity of digital and communication equipment was seized, including: 13 mobile phones, nine laptops, VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) systems, SIM cards and networking devices, digital storage media, etc.
The seized items include two iPhone 17, three iPhone 16, two iPhone 10, two iPhone 11, one Samsung Galaxy S25FE, one Redmi 11TG5, one NAZRO 50 A, one Redmi Note 7 Pro, one Apple iPad, three Dell Laptops, four HP Laptops and two Apple MacBooks.
The statement said that the modus operandi involved the accused establishing 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, and appear as legitimate service providers to unsuspecting victims.
International calls were being generated and routed through this call centre. A fake YahooMail.com website and Google advertisements were used to target victims.
Individuals across multiple countries were approached through organized 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.
Funds were subsequently transferred into various accounts, including mule accounts and cryptocurrency wallets (primarily USDT).
The illicit proceeds were further layered, converted, and withdrawn to conceal their origin. Notably, no cash transactions were involved, highlighting the fully digital and sophisticated nature of the crime.
The statement said that the transactions carried out so far seem to be running into crores of rupees. The seized material and devices contain substantial incriminating evidence, clearly indicating a highly organized and technologically advanced criminal setup. A case has been registered under the relevant sections of law.