Hyderabad: Enforcement Directorate on Monday arrested Vikas Kumar Nimar alias Misty, alleged kingpin of a multi-crore US fake call centre scam that targeted American citizens through fraudulent technical-support operations run from several cities across India. He was produced before a court and remanded to judicial custody.The ED initiated the probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) based on an FIR registered by Madhapur police. The CBI later registered a case following Interpol inputs received through the US embassy. According to investigators, the accused operated cybercrime call centres in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Lucknow and other parts of the country.The ED alleged: “The accused floated a company named VC Solutions. Analysis of bank accounts revealed huge cash deposits and credits in the accounts of VC Solutions. The accused admitted that the funds were received towards work in the call centre business. However, the income was projected in income tax returns as income from grocery trading and other purported business activities, whereas the investigation had not found any corresponding legitimate business activity commensurate with the volume of transactions.”The ED registered an Enforcement Case Information Report in 2023, alleging a large-scale organised fraud perpetrated through fake call centres targeting foreign nationals, particularly citizens of the United States. The accused allegedly impersonated officials of govt agencies and reputed private companies and induced victims to part with money through gift cards and other digital payment mechanisms.Investigators found that the money obtained through the fraud was initially collected via gift cards and later converted into cryptocurrencies. These cryptocurrencies were subsequently converted into Indian currency through crypto exchanges, informal cash settlement mechanisms and banking channels before being distributed among the operators, controllers and beneficiaries of the syndicate.According to the ED, the syndicate procured customer data of US citizens through specialised call vendors and sent fraudulent emails carrying malware alerts, fake virus warnings and deceptive technical-support messages. Victims were persuaded to call toll-free numbers controlled by the network, after which calls were routed to fake call centres. There, callers allegedly posed as customer-care representatives of reputed companies and induced victims to purchase bogus technical-support services and make payments through gift cards.The gift cards were then redeemed into cryptocurrencies and converted into Indian currency through a network of crypto handlers, cash operators and banking channels.The ED said its PMLA investigation revealed that substantial proceeds of crime were laundered through multiple bank accounts, cash deposits, withdrawals and layered transactions.Nimar, along with his associate Mohammed Irfan Ansari, allegedly played an active role in operating fraudulent technical support and customer support call centres in Ahmedabad, Delhi and Noida.Investigators also found that proceeds of crime were transferred into the bank accounts of Nimar’s family members, the ED said.
