Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Feb 2: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested a cyber fraudster and seized multiple electronic devices in coordinated raids across 35 locations in Delhi and nine other states, as part of a multinational operation named CyStrike, conducted in collaboration with agencies from the US, UK, Kuwait, Ireland, and Singapore.

The operation, executed on January 30 in Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Telangana, and West Bengal, targeted transnational cyber-enabled financial crime networks operated by the accused under fake identities to defraud victims abroad, according to a CBI statement.

In Delhi, the CBI uncovered a network operated by the accused that specifically targeted US citizens online. Key operative Pfokrehrii Peter was arrested on the spot, and laptops, mobile phones, and computer hard disks containing incriminating digital evidence were seized.

The agency also dismantled another cybercrime network run from New Delhi, Ghaziabad, and Karnataka under the website https://eservicemoi-Kw.com, which posed as a Kuwaiti e-Visa service and offered employment appointments in leading Kuwaiti companies to Indian nationals in exchange for money. During the raids, laptops, mobile devices, hard disks, and cash totaling Rs 60 lac were recovered.

In addition to US-targeted fraud, the operation disrupted networks defrauding victims in the UK, Ireland, and Singapore. The CBI identified and shut down multiple mule accounts used to transfer illicit proceeds from victims abroad to the accused.

A CBI official said Operation CyStrike was conducted in close coordination with Interpol and international law enforcement agencies to combat organised technology-enabled crime. The operation has successfully dismantled major transnational cyber-enabled financial crime networks, significantly disrupting their operations.