Surat Cyber Crime Bust: Bank Accounts and SIM Cards Trafficked to Dubai

Surat : Surat Cyber Crime Branch Police have discovered a scheme that entailed creating new bank accounts and delivering quick kits and SIM cards to Dubai. The suspects offered commissions ranging from ₹10,000 to ₹1.5 lakh. The police detained six suspects near the Simada Canara Bank branch, five from Surat and one from Salem, Tamil Nadu. In addition, eleven persons have been declared wanted, including two network operators from Dubai.

According to police investigations, Raj Raiyani and Vijay Od persuaded people to create bank accounts with Canara Bank in Sarthana near Seemada Naka by offering commissions. Later, their account information, debit cards, and SIM cards were sent to Dubai. After obtaining information about the scam, the Cybercrime Unit launched an operation and apprehended the culprits.

According to the inquiry, Raj Raiyani lured people with commission promises and gave Vijay Parmar account packages that included a checkbook and debit cards. Vijay’s brother, Mukesh Parmar, served as a liaison and managed the financial network. Commissions ranged from ₹10,000 to ₹1.5 lakh, with additional fees for transactions conducted through the accounts.

Raj Prakal Raiyani, 28, a resident of Bade Hanuman Society in Bhavnagar; Vijay Maganbhai Od, 23, from Lakshmi Residency in Kamrej; Mahesh Ramji Bhadiadara, 34, from Marutidham Society, Mota Varachha, Bhavnagar; Chanresh Kakadia, 27, from Sitanagar Society in Amreli; Hardik Bhupat Desai, 28, from Vastu Shilp Heights in Mota Varachha, Amreli; and Dhanigauvel Thiruganam, 30, from New Street.

The following people are wanted: Vijay Parmar (Dubai), Mukesh Parmar, Milan Darji (Dubai), Mayank Sojitra, Arun (Chennai), Ajay Kakadia nicknamed Bhagat, Tushar, Raju, Nilesh Vaghasia, Mitesh Patel, and Ketan Vaghela.

The police recovered nine mobile phones, one tablet, 16 Canara Bank account kits, 19 debit cards from various banks, 78 SIM cards from various mobile companies, one HDFC Bank passbook, one HDFC Bank cheque book, six Canara Bank account opening forms, one PAN card, and five Aadhaar cards from various individuals. The majority of the seized kits are from Canara Bank, raising concerns about the involvement of a bank employee in the scheme. The police have also initiated an investigation on this possibility.

During interrogation, Vijay Parmar disclosed that he had been communicating with Arun in Chennai via Telegram for the previous five months. Arun was supposed to receive account kits and SIM cards through courier. Arun’s brother, Dhanigauvel, had flown to Surat to retrieve the kits and was staying at the Purple Hotel. The cops apprehended Dhanigauvel before he could collect the kits. The investigation is still ongoing, with a focus on transactions made through these accounts and further unraveling the hoax.