NEW DELHI, 10 AUG

The CBI has dismantled a clandestine syndicate of cyber criminals masquerading as an Amazon technical support centre operational at a resort in Maharashtra's Nashik, arresting five Mumbai-based fraudsters who were allegedly targeting US and Canadian citizens, officials said Sunday.

The illegal enterprise comprising a coterie of six Mumbai-based fraudsters, named as accused in the FIR, operated in conspiracy with other unidentified bank officials and private individuals.

They allegedly committed financial fraud by impersonation, making phishing calls from the illegal call centre, posing as Amazon Support Services Call Centre from Rain Forest Resort in Igatpuri, Nashik, they said.

The cyber criminal network bilked citizens of the United States and Canada in meticulously constructed and elaborate deception, complete with a structured hierarchy of 60 operators who were recruited as callers, verifiers and closers for running the said illegal call centre and obtaining proceeds of crime through gift cards and cryptocurrency, they said.

During the searches, the CBI found that 62 employees were working in the call centre operating live and were involved in the process of cheating foreign nationals.

The agency has arrested five of the accused named in the FIR -- Vishal Yadav, Shebaz, Durgesh, Abhay alias Raja and Sameer alias Kalia alias Sohail.

"It was alleged in the FIR that the accused persons entered into criminal conspiracy with each other and other unknown persons, and have committed financial fraud by impersonation and making phishing calls/deceptive calls, from an illegal call centre, posing as Amazon Support Services Call Centre," a CBI spokesperson said in a statement.

The CBI also allegedly found a trove of digital and physical evidence in 44 laptops and 71 mobile phones seized during the operation.

A staggering unaccounted cash of Rs 1.20 crore, 500 gm gold and seven luxury cars worth Rs one crore each, besides transactions of approximately USD 5000 in cryptocurrency and gift vouchers worth 2000 Canadian Dollar (Rs 1.26 lakh) were also detected during the searches.