CBI nabs key accused in cyber scam targeting Japan nationals

Moharana, who had been absconding since May, was apprehended at the Bhubaneswar airport on Thursday upon his return from the UAE. Officials said he was the mastermind behind an illegal Noida-based call centre--VoIP Connect Pvt Ltd--that impersonated technical support executives of reputed multinational companies to extort money from unsuspecting victims abroad.

According to the CBI, the arrest marks a major step in Operation Chakra-V, an ongoing crackdown on global cybercrime networks.

Moharana’s name surfaced after CBI raids on May 28 this year at 19 locations across Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, which led to the arrest of six operatives. The accused had fled India a day later, evading investigators as the Noida call centre was busted.

“Moharana’s network targeted Japanese citizens using sophisticated social engineering techniques and deception. Victims were tricked into believing their systems were compromised and were coerced into transferring funds as ‘support charges’,” a senior official said.

After his arrest, Moharana was brought to Delhi on a transit warrant and produced before a special CBI court, which remanded him to three-day police custody for interrogation. The agency said seven persons have been arrested in the case so far and chargesheets had been filed against all of them.

The operation, officials said, was executed in close coordination with Japan’s National Police Agency and Microsoft Corporation, whose cybersecurity teams provided critical technical inputs. The joint effort has “significantly disrupted” the fraud syndicate’s global operations, the agency added.