In a significant breakthrough, Goa Police have arrested three individuals, including a Kazakhstan national of Chinese origin, involved in an international trafficking ring operating cyber slavery call centers across Southeast Asia. The arrests followed the rescue of 549 Indians from cyber slavery call centers in Myanmar, one of whom was from Goa.
The victim, who had been lured to Thailand with promises of a lucrative job offer in a call center, was forced to scam victims in the USA by convincing them to invest in fake trading companies or participate in honey-trapping schemes. The Goa Police registered an offense based on a complaint filed by PSI Sarvesh Sawant, which led to the investigation.
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The investigation revealed that the primary accused, Adithya Ravichandran, was responsible for conducting interviews of potential candidates for the fake call center jobs. Ravichandran worked for Rupnarayan Gupta, who runs a recruitment agency named Evanka in Mulund, Mumbai. This agency, however, is not registered with the Ministry of External Affairs and has been facilitating the illegal trafficking of Indian nationals for fraudulent employment in foreign countries.
Gupta, in collaboration with agents across India, sourced candidates for fake job placements. He then arranged their travel to Thailand, where they were forced to engage in cyber fraud activities. The third accused, Talaniti Nulaxi, a Kazakhstan national, was involved in hiring victims to carry out financial fraud using platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram, WeChat, and Zoom. The gang conducted meetings via Zoom to coordinate operations.
The investigation has revealed that this gang operated across multiple countries, recruiting individuals under the pretext of offering high-paying job opportunities abroad. In total, they have reportedly trafficked numerous Indian nationals for cyber slavery and financial fraud.
