Thiruvanthapuram: City police on Monday busted a capital-based international cyberfraud racket allegedly targeting American citizens through fake loan applications, raiding a rented complex office in Sreekaryam, arresting 18 men, mostly from Uttar Pradesh, and seizing 50 computers.The operation came to light after the district anti-narcotic special action force placed the building under surveillance following a tip-off that inter-state workers were using the premises for drug trafficking. Police monitored the complex for three days before raiding it on Monday, during which they stumbled upon the organised cyberfraud network.Police said 13 of the arrested men were directly involved in the fraud, while five others worked as housekeeping staff. Five suspects escaped during the raid and are being traced. One accused allegedly tried to flee through the airport but was intercepted and taken into police custody.Police said the gang rented the commercial building around one-and-a-half months ago and has been operating the racket from there. The accused allegedly posed as representatives of loan application companies and targeted victims in the United States. Police said the suspects had undergone training to speak in an American accent to make their calls appear genuine and are also probing whether the group received assistance from US-based persons.The computers seized during the raid have been examined, while nearly 10 systems remain inaccessible and will undergo forensic analysis. Police said the exact value of the fraud would be determined only after the forensic examination of the electronic devices and analysis of the digital evidence.“The premises were kept under surveillance after we received information about suspected drug-related activities. During the surveillance, we uncovered a well-organised cyberfraud operation targeting foreign nationals. The exact scale of the fraud and the money involved will become clear only after the forensic examination of the seized computers,” a senior police officer said.Police said efforts were on to trace the five absconding suspects and identify others linked to the racket. Investigators are also tracking the money trail and examining the digital evidence to establish the full extent of the operation.
