Hyderabad Police Uncover Racket Trafficking Youths To Cambodia For Cyber Fraud

Hyderabad: In a striking expose, Hyderabad’s Cyber Crime Police have uncovered a sinister human trafficking and cyber fraud racket involving a Nizamabad resident, who allegedly lured youths to Cambodia under the guise of job offers but pushed them into illegal activities at fake call centres operated by Chinese cybercriminals.

Additional Commissioner of Police Vishwaprasad, along with Deputy Commissioner of Police Kavitha Dara, Assistant Commissioners of Police Shivamaruthi and Jayapal Reddy, and Inspector Seetharamulu, disclosed the details during a press meet at the Basheerbagh CCS office on Friday.

How the racket worked

Chikkala Santosh Kumar (31), a resident of Bouddhanagar in Warasiguda, had been running a visa consultancy. Investigators revealed that he exploited this setup to send three young men from Nizamabad district to Cambodia on tourist visas, charging each of them ₹3 lakh as commission. Upon reaching Cambodia, the victims were trapped in fake call centres and forced to carry out cybercrimes, targeting unsuspecting people online.

Following pressure from the victims' families, Santosh helped them return to India but by then he had already planned to send more youths abroad on instructions from Chinese handlers.

Another fraud: ₹1.11 crore loss in protein powder export scam

During the same investigation, Cyber Crime Police uncovered another fraud. A city-based businessman dealing in protein supplements was duped by Lakshya Varma, who posed as a manager from “Trade Fundamental Pvt Ltd,” claiming links to a Hong Kong-based company. The businessman, convinced he could earn big profits through exports, ended up losing ₹1.11 crore.

On verifying the company details, he discovered it had shut down long ago. His money had been deposited in an account belonging to a grocery shop owner in Gujarat. Further investigation revealed that Paras Singla and Lakshya Varma had used the shop owner's KYC details to open fake accounts, promising him a bank loan.

Arrests and seizures

Santosh Kumar was arrested, and police seized 24 debit cards, 15 mobile phones, 5 passbooks, 7 cheque books, laptops, and company seals. In the protein powder fraud case, accused Paras Singla (29) was nabbed, while Lakshya Varma is still on the run. Police also seized 30 phones, 3 SIM cards, and a debit card from the accused.

The cybercrime unit is continuing its efforts to trace the wider network of agents and foreign links operating these scams.

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