Punjab: Special cell busts two fake centres involved in ‘scamming’ foreign nationals, arrests 10
The DSP claimed the gang used email blasting (sending one mail to a large group of recipients simultaneously) via PayPal to send alerts to foreign nationals that their accounts had been hacked or used for illegal transactions
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After establishing contact, the gang would collect victims’ credit and debit card details and charge them via illegally registered payment gatewaysThe Range Anti-Narcotics-cum-Special Operations Cell, Mohali of Punjab Police claimed to have busted two fake call centres and arrested 10 individuals allegedly involved in duping foreign nationals using fraudulent tactics.
Providing details, DSP Rupinder Deep Kaur Sohi of the Special Operations Cell said the accused operated from fake call centres where they used laptops and computers to scam people abroad. Based on a tip-off, a police team led by Inspector-in-Charge of the unit raided Manchanda Tower in Phase 7, Mohali, where they discovered call centres operating on the first and third floors.
On the first floor, police arrested Manmeet Singh Banwait, owner of the call centre and a resident of Sector 53, Mohali, and staff members Anmol Malhotra ( from Shivjot, Kharar), Jasneet Kaur (Kharar), Narmita (Sector 117, Mohali), Gurpreet Singh (Phase 1, Mohali), and Wagsaim Hungio (from Dimapur Sadar, Nagaland, but currently residing in Balongi). Police seized 5 laptops, 9 mobile phones, headphones, and luxury vehicles used in their operations, including a Fortuner, Honda Jazz, and Hyundai Verna.
The DSP claimed the gang used email blasting (sending one mail to a large group of recipients simultaneously) via PayPal to send alerts to foreign nationals that their accounts had been hacked or used for illegal transactions. Victims were urged to call toll-free numbers. During the calls, they were falsely told that their cases were being transferred to the bank, and another person sitting in the same office would pose as a bank official offering a refund.
“The callers would convince victims to provide Apple gift cards, extract the money, and convert it into USDT or hawala transfers, eventually withdrawing the funds in cash in India,” Sohi said.
On the third floor, another fake call centre was busted. Police arrested its manager Moria Nath, alias Christopher, (from Dwarka, Delhi who is currently residing in Aerocity, Mohali), along with his associates Ishwar Kumar (from Himachal Pradesh, now living in Kharar), Rinchen Vinayil (from Bhutan, currently residing in Kharar), and Dolly Kumari (from Jharkhand, now living in Kharar). Police recovered 4 CPUs, 4 headphones, and 5 mobile phones from the manager.
The DSP said according to the investigation, this second team ran a fake call centre under the guise of a travel company, luring foreign nationals through a fake website advertising discounted air tickets. After establishing contact, the gang would collect victims’ credit and debit card details and charge them via illegally registered payment gateways.
“They obtained customer approvals through emails and used various vendors to process the payments. The vendors deducted commissions and returned the remaining funds either into the accused’s accounts or as cash in India,” Sohi added.
Victims were ultimately defrauded without receiving any tickets.
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