New Delhi: They pretended to be healers, but the whole time they were stealing data. They set up small medical camps with a fake nurse and a few basic medicines across Uttar Pradesh, from Ayodhya to Mathura to Lucknow. While innocent people came to them for treatment, their data was taken, and later used to procure SIM cards which were used for digital arrests.
It all began with Mathura residents Jitendra Singh (29) and Brajesh Kumar (21) acting as middlemen between sim sellers and buyers on social media groups like Facebook. “Every time an individual wanted to sell their SIMs and a fraudster wanted to buy them, these men would act as middlemen,” said DCP Gaurav Tyagi.
The accused would buy the SIMs for Rs 700-800 and sell them for over Rs 2,000, he said. “Then they decided to increase their profit margin by selling SIMs directly.”
The accused began putting up fake medical camps in several places in Uttar Pradesh where they would collect identity documents like voter cards and Aadhaar cards of those visiting the camps. “They would coerce people to share copies of these documents in exchange for a blood sugar or blood pressure check. They would then use the documents to procure e-SIMs for digital arrest,” said the DCP.
The police learnt about the scam only after Shriniwas Singh, a resident of Delhi, registered a complaint of losing Rs 1.64 crore through digital arrest over a period of two weeks.
“Singh was subjected to a digital arrest over approximately two weeks. During this period, under alleged coercion and threats, the complainant transferred a total Rs 1.64 crore through six RTGS transactions to six different bank accounts,” the officer said.
“When we began our investigation, technical analysis of mobile numbers and device-related data led the team to the Vrindavan–Mathura region of Uttar Pradesh. Sustained investigation revealed a suspected network involved in the procurement, activation and supply of e-SIMs, allegedly facilitating cybercrime operations,” the DCP said.
Jitendra Singh and Brajesh Kumar were subsequently nabbed from Mathura, and the police confiscated three mobile phones and several SIM cards. “There are at least 20 complaints on the National Cyber Reporting Platform (NCRP). We are investigating a wider network,” said the officer.
The accused have been booked for cheating and forging documents or electronic records.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)