The Gujarat police have successfully exposed an international cybercrime syndicate that defrauded citizens of over ₹804 crore (approximately £75 million), leading to the arrest of ten individuals in Surat. This was announced by Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi on Saturday.
The Minister also personally handed back ₹5.51 crore to a number of victims who had collectively lost the amount after being conned by the gang. The syndicate operated out of locations including Dubai, Vietnam, and Cambodia, and targeted people across the whole of India.
Sanghavi stated that the state police have launched a war against cybercriminals who prey on people's hard-earned money.
“This gang used to obtain bank accounts and SIM cards from ordinary citizens by tempting them with a 1.5–2 per cent commission, and then misuse these for committing cyber fraud," he explained. "The gang has committed 1,549 crimes across the country and defrauded citizens of about ₹804 crore.” The minister added that the gang members made ₹17.75 crore through 141 digital crimes in Gujarat alone.
As part of the operation to dismantle the gang, police arrested ten suspects from Surat. Sanghavi confirmed they had recovered 65 mobile phones, 447 debit cards, 529 bank account kits, 686 SIM cards, and 16 POS (point of sale) machines.
During the event at the Cyber Centre of Excellence, Sanghavi returned the ₹5.51 crore to the victims of the fraud.
One recipient, a senior citizen from Vadodara, had been promised huge profits in the name of reputable insurance companies and was reimbursed ₹4.91 crore.
In another case, an elderly woman from Ahmedabad was subjected to a “digital arrest,” threatened with implication in a drug case, and kept under house arrest via Skype for 12 days. The police seized ₹48 lakh from the cyber criminals in this instance, and the money was returned to the owner.
Additionally, ₹12.70 lakh lost by a family through a fake trading application called “ROCKCREEAK” was also recovered and returned.
Sanghavi appealed to the public to adopt a “cyber security shield” and urged them to call the cyber helpline 1930 within the “golden hour”—the first hour of falling victim to any cyber fraud.
The minister stressed that there is no legal provision like “digital arrest” in India, and people should not fear calls from impersonators threatening legal action.
Shifting his focus, the Minister announced a special tribute: “Tomorrow night, the entire state of Gujarat will perform garba (the traditional folk dance) on Operation Sindoor in honour of our Army, in one rhythm and one tune.” He requested that garba organisers and DJs play the ‘Operation Sindoor’ garba in every street, 'pol' (residential cluster), and other venue at the scheduled time to inspire citizens to dance to it with pride.
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