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Operation Chakra-V Intensifies Crackdown on ‘Digital Arrest’ Cyberfraud

Nationwide raids have led to arrests, shutdowns of Cambodian call centres, with investigators tracing laundered funds through mule accounts.

Overview

  • Under Operation Chakra-V, the CBI has deployed over 50,000 cyber commandos in coordinated raids, arresting nine individuals tied to 8.5 lakh mule accounts used in digital arrest scams.
  • In late June, Thane cyber police arrested three suspects in a ₹3.04 cr fraud and uncovered transfers of ₹82.46 lakh overseas, while Chandigarh units detained three more in a ₹2.5 cr case, bringing total arrests there to 11.
  • Gurugram authorities apprehended a 24-year-old operative arriving from Phnom Penh’s Mango Park call centre, exposing the syndicate’s international hub orchestrating video-call cons.
  • Fraudsters impersonate law enforcement and regulatory officials through video links and forged documents to intimidate predominantly elderly victims into transferring funds via UPI, virtual assets and mule accounts.
  • Authorities are working to dismantle remaining cells and recover assets with support from I4C advisories, CERT-In alerts and a Zero FIR guideline to boost fraud reporting and prevention.