Hyderabad: Six individuals have been arrested in connection with a sophisticated SIM-swap cyberfraud operation, where the accused sent preloaded mobile devices to victims to intercept OTPs and siphon off ₹77.7 lakh, Cyberabad cybercrime police revealed during a press briefing on Saturday.
Details of the Arrested Accused
The arrested accused have been identified as Selim Mondal, Abdul Alim SK alias Mittu, Saiyad Hasim Reza alias Tippu, Mijanur Rahaman Shaik, Bansidhar, and Mehebub Alam Ansary alias Suraj. They were produced on transit warrants and subsequently remanded to judicial custody.
Modus Operandi
Police stated that the accused posed as officials from a bank’s premium credit card division. Under the pretext of Department of Telecommunications (DoT) verification, they convinced victims to convert their e-SIMs into physical SIMs. Victims were then sent mobile devices embedded with malicious applications. Once the SIM cards were inserted into these devices, OTPs and banking alerts were diverted to the accused, granting them unauthorized access to bank accounts and enabling fraudulent online transactions.
Recoveries Made
During police custody, ₹15 lakh in cash was recovered from the residences of the accused in West Bengal. From Selim, authorities seized six mobile phones, a laptop, five SIM cards, bank-related labels, stickers, and an AUX voice transmitter cable. From Hasim, ₹13 lakh and one mobile phone were recovered. From Bansidhar, ₹2 lakh and one mobile phone were seized. From the remaining accused, three mobile phones were also confiscated.
Police Advisory
Police have advised the public not to share OTPs or SIM-related details with unknown callers and to avoid inserting SIM cards into unverified devices received via courier. A case has been registered under Sections 318(4), 319(2), 336(3), 338, and 340(2) of the BNS, and Section 66-D of the IT Act at the Cybercrime Police Station, Cyberabad. Further investigation into the incident is underway.
