Chennai authorities have busted an international SIM box network facilitating Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls for cyber scam gangs working under Chinese handlers. Six people were arrested, and 14 high-capacity SIM box setups were seized in Chennai suburbs and Madurai.
The arrested individuals are:
Habeeb Naina (41)
Vinoth (31)
Sarath Kumar (27) and his brother Immanuel
Saravanakumar, a Kotak Mahindra Bank relationship manager
Pandeeswari (25), an Airtel sales staff member
Investigations revealed that these SIM boxes were connected to multiple cybercrime cases across Tamil Nadu, including one registered with the Kancheepuram cybercrime police station. The devices, supplied from Hwang Ho district in China, were operated from gated communities in Kanathur, Kelambakkam (ECR), and Madurai.
A Chinese handler had recruited the accused with promises of commission to manage the SIM boxes. When payments were delayed, Sarath Kumar and his brother took over operations. Sarath also confessed to opening multiple bank and trust accounts with the help of Saravanakumar to evade detection during high-value transactions.
Police are continuing their probe to track the full network and identify other collaborators involved in this cross-border cyber scam.
