'Myanmar Slave Compounds': CBI Chargesheet Reveals Key Details Of Transnational Digital Arrest Fraud
The CBI uncovered details that pointed to a transnational crime nexus that spanned all the way to compounds in Myanmar where Indian nationals were held captive.
The Central Bureau of Investigation filed a chargesheet against 13 accused individuals in a prominent 'digital arrest' cyber fraud case, spanning across and beyond India's borders.
The charges pressed by the investigation agency is a part of 'Operation Chakra-V' which consists of a "case-by-case crackdown" on organised transnational cybercrime.
The CBI uncovered details that pointed to a transnational crime nexus that spanned all the way to compounds in Myanmar where Indian nationals were held captive and forced to run call centre scams at their captors' behest.
The case was registered on a 'suo motu' basis, or on their own accord, in order to launch a comprehensive probe into the sharp rise of digital arrest fraud cases, according to a release issued by the CBI on Thursday.
The agency conducted "coordinated searches" across Delhi-NCR, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Kerala and West Bengal regions. It subsequently arrested three accused persons who are now in judicial custody.
They were charged using incriminating material unearthed by the authorities, that included electronic devices, communication logs, financial records and other digital evidence.
The CBI pored through 15,000 IP addresses linked to these scam networks over the course of the investigation.
Their technical analysis reportedly revealed extensive cross-border connections, that pointed towards several major bank accounts that were used to collect and transfer victim's funds which are being run by "masterminds" based in Cambodia, Hong Kong and China.
The investigation isolated India-based IP addresses and facilitated searches and identification of domestic operatives.
The CBI also unearthed a major detail using multiple streams of evidence, which pointed towards slave compounds operating in Myanmar and neighbouring areas. These place have been identified as key hubs for carrying out digital arrest frauds.
The agency said that Indian nationals have been trafficked to these areas and are coerced to operate call centre-style cybercrime operations.
"These findings align with intelligence gathered during parallel CBI investigations into cyber-slavery and organised digital exploitation networks in South-East Asia," the release said.
The investigation has also generated more significant leads on the financial trail, call-flow patterns, VoIP routing, remote-access tool misuse, and the broader technology infrastructure supporting digital arrest scams.
"This systematic, case-by-case dismantling of each operational component remains central to CBI’s evolving cybercrime enforcement strategy," the agency said.
Based on the evidence collected, the CBI has filed a chargesheet against 13 accused within the statutory 60-day period under provisions of the IPC and IT Act. Further investigation is continuing to identify additional conspirators, facilitators, money-mule handlers, and the overseas infrastructure enabling these transnational cyber fraud operations.
