Bhubaneswar: City police on Monday blew the lid off a sophisticated international SIM box-based crime syndicate that was illegally converting foreign calls into local ones to facilitate cyber fraud.Acting on a department of telecommunications alert, the commissionerate’s special squad arrested two Kerala natives, Ummar M and Siyahul Haq, both in their 20s, who had been running the operation from a hostel in Chandrasekharpur-Patia area here since Oct.Police officials have uncovered a high-volume illegal call-routing setup linked to operators in China, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and other South-east Asian countries. Using SIM box devices connected to broadband lines, the syndicate masked the origin of internet-based voice over internet protocol (VoIP) calls, making them appear as local global system for mobile communications (GSM) calls. This allowed fraudsters to bypass telecom monitoring systems and generate massive call volumes simultaneously.Officials revealed that the network relied on VPNs and virtual numbers to conceal its base of operations. “We are examining suspected links to Bangladesh and Malaysia. Investigation is underway to trace bank accounts tied to the racket and checking how the SIM cards were obtained using forged documents or through agents,” a senior police official said.The accused allegedly co-ordinated via Telegram and WhatsApp, procuring SIM cards under fake identities. Police seized 12 SIM boxes, numerous SIM cards, laptops, routers, mobile phones, and UPS units. Police authorities are now verifying the SIM cards to assess the scale of fraud and financial losses.“The seized equipment suggests the racket was converting international calls into local ones to carry out cyber fraud while avoiding detection. We are not just trying to trace the source of the SIM cards, but also analysing bank accounts linked to the phone numbers and identifying other members of the network,” the police official said.Police have come to know that some members of the gang were previously arrested in Assam and Kerala. “We will take the accused on remand for interrogation,” the police official said.
