The North East Division Cyber Crime police have arrested a businessman from Visakhapatnam for allegedly being part of an international SIM smuggling racket.
Security personnel at the Kempegowda International Airport recently found a consignment with over 40 pre-activated SIM cards heading to Taiwan and Cambodia through an international courier company. Based on a complaint, the North East Division police tracked down the accused to Visakhapatnam.
A probe revealed that the consignment concealed 24 SIM cards. The parcel was booked in the name of Srinivasa Rao from Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, and was destined for Taiwan.
Similarly, another parcel concealing 114 SIM cards booked in the name of Syed from Chennai was booked for Cambodia. The airport police have registered a case under the Telecommunications Act.
A probe revealed that Srinivasa Rao was allegedly part of an international cyber crime racket and was responsible for supplying pre-activated SIM cards to gangs operating in Taiwan and Cambodia targeting victims from India, said the police.
Srinivasa Rao used to collect SIM cards from Chennai and Visakhapatnam using fake documents and send them to his contacts through international courier, the police added.
The police alerted the staff of the international courier agencies to keep a watch on suspicious parcels.
