Bengaluru cybercrime police have arrested four people and seized 10 SIM box devices after raiding two suspected SIM box centres in the Whitefield and Kadugodi areas, according to a report by Prajavani. Preliminary investigation indicates that both centres were operating under a single alleged criminal network.
The arrests were made by the Whitefield cybercrime police. The four accused are from Maharashtra, the report said. Police action followed a complaint from the chief nodal officers of Bharti Airtel Limited in Bengaluru over the suspected illegal use of Airtel SIM cards in Whitefield and Kadugodi.
The operation focused on two locations that investigators identified as SIM box centres. A SIM box is a device-based setup that can handle multiple SIM cards and communications connections. In this case, police recovered 10 such devices during the raids, according to the report.
The suspected network is being examined for possible links with digital arrest fraud, sextortion and online investment scams reported across the country. Prajavani reported that the connection remains a matter of suspicion in the preliminary investigation; the supplied report does not establish that the arrested individuals have been charged or convicted in those cases.
The complaint by Airtel’s chief nodal officers formed the basis for the raids, bringing telecom usage and cybercrime investigation together in the case. The suspected misuse of SIM cards in two Bengaluru localities was the specific trigger for the police action, while the seizure of multiple SIM box devices has expanded the investigation to the alleged network operating the centres.
The case highlights the role of telecom infrastructure in investigations into online fraud, but the information currently available does not specify the identities of the arrested people, the exact addresses of the raided premises, the number of SIM cards recovered, or the value of any alleged fraud. It also does not provide details of the next legal steps or the sections of law invoked.
The Whitefield cybercrime police are continuing their investigation into the two centres and their suspected links with a wider digital fraud network. Further details will depend on the findings of the investigation and subsequent official action.
