Rs 22.92-cr digital arrest case: Accused used SIM box to trap retd banker, operation handled from Cambodia, say police

Seventy-eight-year-old retired banker Naresh Malhotra was allegedly placed under digital arrest for over six weeks. He allegedly transferred Rs 22.92 crore to 16 bank accounts through 21 transactions, after which the funds were further splintered across seven layers involving 4,236 transactions.

Police said Malhotra received a phone call on August 1, 2025, from a woman posing as a senior telecom official, who claimed that his mobile number was linked to illegal activities. He was subsequently contacted by fraudsters impersonating officers of Mumbai Police, ED and CBI. The scammers allegedly kept him under constant video surveillance and forced him to sign an undertaking to maintain secrecy. Malhotra reported the matter to the Delhi Police IFSO (Intelligence Fusion & Strategic Operations) on September 19, 2025. An FIR was registered the same day.

During the probe, officers said, it was found that the fraudsters used a SIM box to initiate calls. The location of the SIM box, however, is yet to be traced.

An officer said that SIM boxes are mostly used in call centres to send encrypted or recorded voice calls to multiple people, but their installation requires permission from government authorities. “On the pretext of setting up call centres, fraudsters take the help of unsuspecting individuals by promising them good returns. Their job is to keep changing fraudulently activated SIM cards, obtained using stolen or duplicate identities through compromised point-of-sale outlets, while knowing they are working for call centres. It can generate thousands of calls a day by constantly rotating multiple SIM cards,” the officer added.

The probe has so far led to the arrest of five persons, who have also been chargesheeted in a court last month. Investigators have found that the fraudsters operated in two chains – one group made calls, while another group transferred the defrauded money between multiple accounts.

Police identified the accused as Ashok, Mohit, Amit, Samarjeet and Kanakpal, residents of Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. “They are mule account holders and facilitators… The main operator of both the chains is based in Cambodia,” said an officer.

Earlier this month, the IFSO had busted a transnational cyber fraud syndicate with links to China, Nepal, Cambodia, Taiwan and Pakistan. Seven persons, including a Taiwanese national, were arrested. The accused allegedly used SIM boxes recovered from Delhi, Mumbai and Mohali. Those arrested also included individuals who had been contracted to set up the SIM boxes.