New Delhi: The IGI Airport police team has dismantled a sophisticated SIM smuggling network connected to an international online gaming operation.
The accused were identified as Ankit Kumawat (30), Ashwin Kumar (37), Manish Kumar (35), Lokendra Sendhav (32), and Dwarka Prasad (42), all were residents of Madhya Pradesh.
According to the police, the crackdown led to the arrest of five individuals from Madhya Pradesh and the seizure of 398 activated Indian SIM cards registered under fake identities.
These SIM cards, described by officials as “digital weapons,” were intended to be used in cross-border cyber fraud activities, particularly within online gaming platforms.
The investigation began on February 15, when CISF personnel at Terminal 3 of IGI Airport intercepted Sunil Rawat, who was set to board an IndiGo flight to Dubai. A security screening revealed he was carrying a parcel containing 212 Airtel and 186 Vodafone Idea SIM cards, all issued in the names of different individuals.
A formal FIR was registered under Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on March 6.
During interrogation, Rawat revealed that he was promised Rs 35,000 and a job in Dubai by his childhood friend, Faisal, currently based in the UAE.
Faisal had instructed Rawat to deliver the SIM cards, which were couriered to him in Ghaziabad by Ashwin Kumar and Ankit Kumawat from Madhya Pradesh.
Further investigation traced the fraudulent procurement of SIM cards to the districts of Ujjain and Dewas.
Victims confirmed they had been misled by Kumawat into believing the SIMs were part of a promotional offer.
He promised to deactivate the cards after a month but instead sold them to Kumar for 500 rupees each.
These were later funneled to Faisal through Rawat.
A special team led by Inspector Sushil Goyal and supervised by ACP VKPS Yadav arrested Ankit Kumawat in Ujjain, who revealed Ashwin Kumar’s involvement.
Kumar, in turn, implicated his brother Manish Kumar, who connected him with Faisal. Ashwin confirmed he sold the SIMs at 2,000 rupees apiece to Faisal for use in online gaming applications.