In a massive breakthrough against international cybercrime, the Intelligence Fusion & Strategic Operations (IFSO) Unit of the Delhi Police has dismantled a critical arm of a transnational criminal syndicate operating from Cambodia and other South-East Asian countries.
The well-coordinated network was involved in systematically cheating unsuspecting citizens by impersonating law-enforcement officials and coercing them under the guise of fake “digital arrests” and fraudulent investment schemes. The extensive operation has led to the arrest of 11 accused individuals in Delhi who were utilizing advanced digital malicious tools, covert communication applications, and a network of mule bank accounts to systematically siphon off crores of rupees. The massive police investigation kicked off following a formal complaint lodged on the National Cyber Crime Portal by Sh. Pradeep Kumar Das (69), a retired Scientist “F” and former Director at the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). According to official reports, on 14 August 2026, the elderly victim received a phone call from an unknown mobile number. The fraudsters on the line masqueraded as high-ranking officers representing the Delhi Police, Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), and National Investigation Agency (NIA). They falsely claimed that Das’s Aadhaar card had been deeply implicated in a severe money-laundering case and threatened him with immediate imprisonment. By weaponizing psychological fear, the syndicate placed the retired bureaucrat under a continuous video call to strictly monitor and exercise control over his physical movements. Under the pretext of a mandatory “fund verification process,” they unlawfully extracted his banking details and pressured him into transferring a staggering ₹1,25,09,000 via RTGS across three designated bank accounts. Following this, an FIR (No. 148/26) was registered at the PS Special Cell, New Delhi, and a deep-dive investigation was initiated.
The targeted police probe initially netted five accused individuals responsible for procuring and managing the illicit mule bank accounts used to park the stolen money, including a key account maintained with ICICI Bank. During the intense interrogation of one of the arrested men, identified as Saif Ali Khan, detectives picked up a critical tip-off from a secret informer regarding an active gang operating out of a hotel near Ramphal Chowk, Sector-7, Dwarka, Delhi. The gang was reportedly running a current bank account under the banner of M/s MR Traders (maintained with HDFC Bank) specifically to process illicit cyber-fraud proceeds. Acting swiftly on this intelligence, a specialized IFSO team led by Inspector Satish Kumar, comprising SI Brajesh, HC Manoj Kumar, HC Rajesh, HC Deepak, HC Pawan, HC Dharmender, and Ct. Shekhar Chandra, was formed. The team worked under the close supervision of ACP Vivekanand Jha and overall command of DCP Gaurav Tyagi. The team tracked down the mobile number tied to the suspicious M/s MR Traders account, which led them to Mahamaya Apartment on Ramphal Chowk Road, Dwarka. A raid at the location caught five more key operatives red-handed inside Room No. 18 on the second floor. The IFSO unit is continuing its deep-dive financial forensics to track the complete money trail, isolate additional mule bank accounts, and identify further domestic and international links tied to this massive South-East Asian cyber-fraud network.
