7 months ago
Bihar Village Linked to International Cyber Fraud Network
In a small village in Bihar, India, a man named Mukesh Kumar was found to be running an illegal operation that helped people from other countries commit cyber fraud.
He had special boxes that could use many phone cards at once to make calls that looked like they were coming from India, but were actually from places like Cambodia and Thailand.
The police found out because there were too many calls coming from his village compared to the number of people living there.
They raided his house and found the boxes, phone cards, and other equipment.
Mukesh said he didn't know what he was doing, but the police think he was part of a bigger group.
The village has few jobs, and some people think Mukesh was trying to make easy money.
He was arrested and later released on bail.
Mukesh Kumar from Bhaluni village in Bihar was running an illegal SIM network to reroute international calls and facilitate cyber frauds.
The operation was linked to global hubs like Cambodia and Thailand, with revenue losses estimated at up to Rs 50 crore.
The Bihar Police's Economic Offences Unit (EOU) raided Mukesh's house on July 29, 2025, seizing SIM boxes, SIM cards, and other equipment.
Mukesh claimed he was falsely implicated and was released on bail by the Patna High Court on December 3, 2025.
The investigation suggests that the operation was part of a larger network orchestrated from Southeast Asia, targeting young people for easy money.
- Who
- Mukesh Kumar, a landless farmer from Bhaluni village in Bihar, and an international cyber fraud network operating from Southeast Asia.
- What
- An illegal SIM network used to reroute international calls and facilitate cyber frauds.
- Where
- Bhaluni village in the Narayanpur region of Bhojpur district, Bihar, India.
- When
- The investigation began in July 2025, with the raid occurring on July 29, 2025. Mukesh was granted bail on December 3, 2025.
- Why
- To route international Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls through Indian mobile networks, masking their true origin, and to facilitate cyber frauds.
Key facts
- Location
- Bhaluni village, Bhojpur district, Bihar
- Suspect
- Mukesh Kumar
- Seized Items
- SIM boxes, SIM cards, routers, biometric devices, mobile phones, laptop, bank cards, identity documents, Rs 81,000 in cash
- Revenue Loss
- Up to Rs 50 crore to the Department of Telecommunications
- Investigating Agency
- Bihar Police's Economic Offences Unit (EOU) and CBI
- Date of Raid
- July 29, 2025
- Bail Grant Date
- December 3, 2025
- Population of Narayanpur Region
- 2,125 (as per 2011 Census)
Quotes
Manavjit Singh Dhillon
DIG, Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar Police
“Certain Common Service Centre operators conducted village-level camps under the pretext of enrolling people in government welfare schemes and collected their biometric data. This data was then used, in collusion with registered distributors and retailers of telecom service providers, to obtain a large number of SIM cards. These cards were subsequently routed through the SIM boxes and used for cyber fraud”
indianexpress.com
“The orchestrators from foreign countries lure young people online. They even do background checks and conduct virtual interviews, targeting people with no criminal history who are eager to make easy money. Each SIM-box keeper is kept unaware of the others so that if one is caught, the entire operation is not compromised”
indianexpress.com
