Why a cluster of villages in Mathura have been dubbed ‘Mini Jamtara’

These villages lie at the junction of UP, Rajasthan and Haryana borders — a geography, police say, has helped these villages evolve into cybercrime hubs

Mathura SSP, Shlok Kumar, said a team of 50 police personnel and 26 inspectors reached the outskirts of Devseras, Modseras, Mandoura and Nagla Meva villages.

Once an unremarkable cluster of villages, Devseras in Mathura has earned an infamous new moniker — ‘Mini Jamtara’. In large cybercrime crackdowns in recent months, Mathura Police raided the villages and arrested 37 people allegedly linked to interstate online fraud networks.

The latest operation began at 5 am on Thursday.

Mathura SSP, Shlok Kumar, said a team of 50 police personnel and 26 inspectors reached the outskirts of Devseras, Modseras, Mandoura and Nagla Meva villages. To avoid alerting local networks, police vehicles were parked outside, and teams entered through farm trails before cordoning off the settlements.

“As soon as the teams reached, people started running in different directions. The topography makes it easy to flee across state borders, and around 10 key suspects managed to escape,” said the Mathura SSP.

These villages lie at the junction of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana borders — a geography, police say, has helped these villages evolve into cybercrime hubs and helped many suspects to flee through farm trails.

The raids continued for nearly 12 hours, during which police searched over 300 houses. A large cache of incriminating material was seized, including dozens of mobile phones, SIM cards, Aadhaar cards, digital devices, and fake documents. Seven motorcycles were also recovered.

While there are reports that the action was taken after an “influential politician” filed a complaint of being duped of crores, the SSP has denied these claims. “The action was taken after we found bulk data in our software, which suggested that there were rackets operating from this area,” he told The Indian Express.

According to police, most of those arrested are young men, though some are over 50 years old. Investigators said the arrested individuals used basic smartphones to run sophisticated fraud operations, phishing, OTP extraction, loan app scams, sextortion and digital blackmail, despite most having studied only till Class 5 to 10.

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“A case has been lodged and they have all been put behind bars… work is on to arrest the 10 named accused who are absconding,” the SSP said.

ASP Rural, Suresh Chandra Rawat, said, “The accused used to defraud people using different methods… they would make people download APK files… Sometimes, they would send an online marriage invite to people, as soon as one would download that card, money would get deducted from their accounts. Many times, they would target new credit-card holders and defraud them of money by making them download a link.”

Cases have been registered under sections 318(4), 336(3), 338, 340(2), 111(3), 132 and 191(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with Sections 66(B) and 66(C) of the IT Act that pertain to cheating by personation using communication devices, dishonest or fraudulent use of electronic records, creating fake digital documents, using forged documents, criminal conspiracy and for obstruction and resistance to the lawful authority.

Saman Husain

Saman Husain is a Correspondent at The Indian Express. Based in New Delhi, she is an emerging voice in political journalism, reporting on civic governance, elections, migration, and the social consequences of policy, with a focus on ground-reporting across Delhi-NCR and western Uttar Pradesh. Professional Profile Education: She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science (Honours) from Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi, and is an alumna of the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), Chennai. Core Beats: Her reporting focuses on the national capital’s governance and politics. She specializes in Delhi’s civic administration and the city units of the BJP, AAP and Congress. In western Uttar Pradesh, she mostly reports on crime. Specialization: She has a keen interest in electoral processes and politics — her recent contributions include work on electoral roll revisions. Recent Notable Articles (since July 2025) Her recent work reflects a strong show-not-tell approach to storytelling, combining narrative reporting with political and historical context: 1. Politics: “On the banks of the Yamuna, a political tussle for Purvanchali support” (October 6): A report on how migration histories shaped electoral strategies in Delhi before the Bihar elections. “Explained: How Delhi’s natural drainage vanished gradually over the centuries” (September 29): An explanatory piece tracing the historical reasons that eventually led to the erosion of Delhi’s rivers and its impact on perrenial flooding. 2. Longforms “Four weddings, three funerals: How a Uttar Pradesh man swindled insurance companies” (October 7): A long-read reconstructing a chilling fraud by a man who killed three of his family members, including both his parents for insurance proceeds. His fourth wife discovered his fraud… “How Ghaziabad conman operated fake embassy of a country that doesn’t exist — for 9 years” (July 27) : A story on bizarre fraud operation and the institutional blind spots that enabled it. 3. Crime and Justice: “He was 8 when his father was killed. Fifteen years later, in UP’s Shamli, he took revenge” (October 18): A deeply reported crime story tracing cycles of violence, memory and justice in rural Uttar Pradesh. “Who killed 19 girls in Nithari? With the SC rejecting appeals, there are no answers and no closure” (July 31): A report capturing the long legal and emotional aftermath of one of India’s most chilling unsolved criminal cases. 4. Policy Impact “At Manthan, over US tariffs, Delhi-NCR’s apparel industry brainstorms solutions” (September 8) and “Trump’s 50% tariff begins to bite: Agra’s leather belt feels the impact” (August 13) : Reports documenting how global trade decisions ripple through local industries, workers and exporters. Signature Style Saman is recognized for her grassroots storytelling. Her articles often focus on the "people behind the policy". She is particularly skilled at taking mundane administrative processes and turning them into compelling human narratives. X (Twitter): @SamanHusain9 ... Read More

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