Illegal SIM card procurement fraud: CBI arrests key conspirator

The CBI has arrested a key conspirator from Guwahati, who had procured over 10,000 SIM cards illegally for use in cyber crimes, officials said Monday. Ubaid Ullah, who was on the run since August last year, was arrested in the early hours of Sunday, they said. ''The arrested accused was an aggregator of illegally issued SIM cards in Guwahati and had been absconding since August 2025...Investigation has revealed that the accused transferred approximately Rs 67 lakh through multiple bank accounts to POS agents to procure approximately 10,000 illegally issued SIM cards,'' a CBI spokesperson said in a statement. ''Evidence has also been found regarding courier transactions used to receive these SIM cards,'' the spokesperson said. The arrest was part of ongoing Operation Chakra-V, through which the CBI has intensified its crackdown on cybercrime infrastructure across India. The agency had registered the case last year involving Point of Sale (POS) agents who were illegally issuing SIM cards and facilitating cyber criminals engaged in offences such as fake digital arrests, loan scams, and investment frauds. ''During the course of investigation, searches were conducted at approximately 45 locations across eight states, leading to the arrest of 10 accused POS agents involved in the issuance of fake/illegally procured SIM cards,'' the spokesperson said.