В Уттаракханде пресечена деятельность крупной кибермошеннической группировки «Навада»

Uttarakhand’s Special Task Force (STF) recently wrapped up a week-long State-wide crackdown on the financial and telecom infrastructure powering cyberfraud, verifying over 800 suspect bank accounts and blocking hundreds of SIM cards and phones. The operation also led to the arrest of over a dozen people, including the alleged masterminds of an organised fraud ring with links to over 200 mule accounts. Addressing the media on Thursday (September 3, 2026), Additional Director General of Police (Crime, Law and Order) and Director (Vigilance) V. Murugesan said the operation’s biggest catch came from Haridwar, where the STF busted what the police have dubbed the “Nawada group”, a cyberfraud network accused of funnelling proceeds from loan scams, fake online trading schemes, and “double your investment” cons through a web of mule accounts. “Five members of the Nawada group were arrested by Shyampur police during the seven-day ‘Operation Hotspot’. Police recovered more than 45 ATM cards, 20 bank passbooks, two laptops, and 17 mobile phones from the accused,” Mr. Murugesan said. Police found that money from the frauds was routed through mule accounts, withdrawn through ATMs and, in some cases, redeposited through cash deposit machines into other accounts to obscure the trail. The State-wide operation targeted not just fraudsters but also the wider banking and telecom network used to move cybercrime proceeds. Between August 24 and September 1, police verified 820 suspected bank accounts and registered 159 First Information Reports (FIRs). They also checked 1,236 ATM withdrawal locations, resulting in 37 FIRs, and 84 cheque withdrawal locations, leading to another 37 FIRs. The police also moved against the telecom infrastructure, blocking 644 suspect SIM cards and 630 IMEIs. Twenty-two suspected SIM-POS locations were verified and 10 FIRs registered. Investigators are examining whether fraudulent KYC practices were being used to supply SIM cards to cybercriminals. The operation also revealed the inter-State reach of cybercrime networks. Analysis of 240 previously identified cybercriminals and suspects through the I4C Samanvaya portal showed more than 100 linkages with cases in other States, Uttarakhand Police said. The crackdown comes as Uttarakhand Police reports that action on 18,749 cybercrime complaints received through the 1930 helpline and the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal helped hold or save around ₹23.44 crore during 2026. “The police campaign is continuing, with a fresh targeted drive launched on September 3 in cybercrime hotspots across Dehradun, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital. Around 2,000 personnel have been deployed, and more than 300 suspects have been detained for questioning and verification,” the official added. Published - September 03, 2026 07:38 pm IST