New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has uncovered an alleged cross-border cyber fraud network in which thousands of Indian SIM cards were procured and used from Cambodia to target victims in India.
According to the agency, a search conducted in Ludhiana, Punjab, on June 5 revealed around 30 local bank accounts being used as part of a cybercrime-linked money trail. Separately, cybercrime police in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, registered a case after noticing suspiciously large-scale SIM sales, following which the ED filed a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act and carried out searches at seven locations in Rajasthan.
In its statement, the ED said it examined about 2.3 lakh SIM cards flagged as suspicious and found 36,000 of them active in Cambodia. Of these, 5,300 SIM cards were allegedly used to make WhatsApp calls and cheat Indians of crores of rupees.
The agency alleged that some agents linked to Airtel, Jio and Vodafone Idea were involved. Investigators said customers with limited literacy were approached on the pretext of SIM porting or issuing a new SIM, their fingerprints and documents were collected, and multiple additional SIMs were activated without their knowledge.
The SIM cards were then allegedly handed over through intermediaries to a Malaysia-linked fraud operator for commission, enabling the scam network to function from Cambodia, the ED said.
