Ahmedabad: The cybercrime cell of the city police has arrested 17 individuals from different locations across the country in connection with a digital arrest fraud case. Among those arrested, four individuals are Taiwanese nationals who were apprehended from Delhi and Bangalore, with two from each city.

In one case, the gang held a senior citizen in “digital arrest” for 10 days, monitoring him through video calls and extorting ₹79.34 lakhs under the pretense of resolving an “RBI issue,” according to Joint Commissioner (Crime) Sharad Singhal. The victim had filed a complaint stating that individuals posing as officials from TRAI, CBI, and the cybercrime branch accused him of involvement in illegal transactions.

After receiving the complaint, police conducted raids in Gujarat, Delhi, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Odisha, and Maharashtra, arresting 17 suspects, including four Taiwanese nationals. The Taiwanese individuals, identified as Mu Chi Sung (42), Chang Hu Yun (33), Wang Chun Wei (26), and Shen Wei (35), had been in India for the past year, providing technical support and mobile apps to facilitate the money transfers.

The Taiwanese-developed app allowed the gang to move funds through bank accounts and crypto wallets in Dubai, with the accused receiving commissions via hawala. The scam operated out of call centers set up to resemble legitimate government offices for video calls.

Police recovered ₹12.75 lakh in cash, 761 SIM cards, 120 mobile phones, 96 cheque books, 92 debit and credit cards, and 42 bank passbooks linked to rented accounts used for transactions.

During a press conference, Sharad Singhal, SP Cyber Crime, stated that a total of 450 complaints involving this gang have been identified so far, and more complaints may come to light in the future. These complaints are not just from Gujarat; several are from Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Maharashtra. Such gangs are spread across the nation, which is why raids were carried out at eight separate locations where call centers were operating.

Two of the suspects were nabbed from Delhi and two from Bangalore. They used to travel in and out of India; among them, one had graduated from Himachal Pradesh and stayed longer in India, while the others would come to set up fraud operations and then leave. Call centers were found operating in Vadodara, Mumbai, Bangalore, and other places.

In the cyber fraud case related to digital arrests, the perpetrators impersonate law enforcement officials, using tactics such as setting up fake police stations or government offices and wearing government uniforms. They then call the victims, claiming that their phone is being used to carry out criminal activities and that, to avoid complications, they need to pay a fee to verify that they are not involved in the case. Most of these cases involve senior citizens. The fraudsters conduct video calls while wearing uniforms to scare the victims, who then pay hefty amounts into multiple accounts linked to these cybercriminals. DeshGujarat.