Assam: Police apprehend 250 youths in major call center raid, capture 3 masterminds, former IAS officer's son absconds

In a major crackdown on illegal call centers, the Guwahati Police have arrested three masterminds and detained 250 individuals following a series of raids across the city. The operation, conducted by the Crime Branch of Guwahati Police, aimed to dismantle scam call centers that had been operating for the past two years, engaging in fraudulent activities and looting money from unsuspecting victims in India and abroad.

Meanwhile, the name of the son of a former IAS rank official has come to the fore according to sources. According to sources , he is currently absconding. 

Guwahati Commissioner of Police, Diganta Barah, provided details of the operation to the media, explaining that the call centers had been conducting their illicit activities mainly during the night. The scammers posed as tech support staff, using pop-up advertisements and toll-free numbers to deceive victims into believing they were contacting legitimate service centers. Once the scammers gained remote access to victims' devices, they would claim that personal information or bank accounts were compromised, coercing victims into making payments via bitcoin or gift vouchers.

These illegal call centers were found to have international ties, with connections to gang members in Delhi, Gurgaon, and other locations. The scammers would collect their commissions in Indian rupees and transfer the remaining funds to gang leaders through hawala channels. Victims, both Indian and international, often from the United States, suffered financial losses, with payments made in dollars.

During the raids, police teams simultaneously targeted eight different locations, including houses, buildings, and malls. The raids were conducted at Guwahati's Bamunimaidam, Borbari, Rajgarh, Gandhibasti, ABC point and Ganneshnguri. 

The employees of these call centers received incentives based on the number of successful scams they conducted.

Recruitment for these call centers primarily occurred through social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and others. Unemployed individuals were contacted, interviewed, and trained for the job. Many employees claimed they were unaware of the illegal nature of their work, while others were motivated by the lure of easy money.

The police operation also revealed that call centers frequently shifted locations to avoid detection, recruiting youths from various Indian states, including Delhi, Punjab, Maharashtra, and Haryana. The scammers targeted educated unemployed youths, and some call centers even employed IT experts to support their fraudulent activities.

The police detained 144 individuals, including 47 women, aged between 21 and 25 years. They also seized 164 desktop computers, 90 laptops, 26 mobile phones, and various electronic gadgets.

The three masterminds arrested during the operation were identified as Debajyoti Dey alias David (aged 30-31 years) from Karimganj, Rajen Sidana (owner of two call centers) from Ludhiana, and Dibyam Arora (aged 31) from Delhi.

Commissioner of Police Diganta Barah cautioned property owners in the city to exercise caution when renting out buildings to prevent the establishment of such illegal operations.