Enforcement Directorate’s Hyderabad wing arrests four more in US call centre fraud case | Hyderabad News

Searches at four premises in Patiala, Pune and Chandigarh on Sept 15 uncovered two operating call centres in Patiala and one in Pune, with around 220 people present

Hyderabad: Enforcement Directorate’s Hyderabad zonal office has arrested four more people in a fake call centre racket accused of collecting cash, gold and other payments from Americans by impersonating US govt officers. Seized digital records show 927 approved collections totalling about ₹261 crore between July 2025 and Sept 2026, the agency said.Prime accused Harshil Nayanbhai Raval, Jaswant Singh, Chetan Munjal and Pranav Pithadia were arrested on Nov 3 under Section 19(1) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. A special PMLA court at Nampally remanded all four to judicial custody, taking the total arrests to seven.Accounts, collections and alleged protectionED alleged that Pithadia owned and managed the Patiala call centres, employing 242 staff, including 110 dialers. He received payment approvals and settlements and directed proceeds through US mule accounts and Dubai accounts.Raval allegedly maintained master accounts recording profits, partners’ shares and remittances to Dubai, and invested proceeds in properties. Singh allegedly coordinated cash pick-ups and parcels from victims in the US, routing collections through tokens and hawala for conversion into rupees.Munjal, a 25% partner in Rabditta Corporates, which runs Kala Ghoda restaurants, allegedly provided protection to the call centres and received funds from their proceeds. ED said the restaurant business received ₹23.19 lakh in alleged proceeds of crime.Three operating centres found during searchesSearches at four premises in Patiala, Pune and Chandigarh on Sept 15 uncovered two operating call centres in Patiala and one in Pune, with around 220 people present.Forensic examination of 79 digital devices yielded chats, ledgers, calling data, victim records and cryptocurrency wallets. ED identified 397 US bank accounts across at least 15 banks used to receive victims’ money.Vikas Nimar, arrested on July 27, Tarachand Nimar, arrested on Aug 5, and Mohd. Irfan Ansari, arrested on Aug 10, remain lodged in Chanchalguda Central Prison.Properties under examinationSeparate preliminary investigation revealed assets identified for examination at an estimated ₹400 crore, including land and properties in Chandigarh and in crypto wallets being examined for possible provisional attachment. The accused has put the money in crypto wallets like USDT and Binance and moving them from one country to other to Singapore and South Korea.The investigation concerns alleged cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy through India-based call centres targeting US residents. ED said it was tracing further proceeds and examining the involvement of other people and entities.GFXDevices examined: 65 mobile phones, 13 laptops and computers, and one data-storage diskForged credentials: At least 11 identity cards and badges purporting to belong to US officials were found in phone galleriesFake paperwork: DOJ seizure and lien notices, Treasury assurance letters, asset-forfeiture notices, a US Court of Appeals order and legal notices purportedly from the FTC and US Supreme CourtContact footprint: 6,463 US telephone numbers were called or messaged from seized phonesIdentity records: 92 images of identity documents; complete Social Security numbers in four cases and the last four digits in 136.Bank accounts: 313 of the 397 recorded accounts were with Wells Fargo. Other banks named include SSB Bank, Bank of America, Thread Bank, Column N.A. and Lead BankAccount misuse: Accounts allegedly belonged to recruited mules, victims whose accounts were taken over, or stolen or synthetic identities. Four victims’ online banking login details were foundCrypto trail: USDT on the TRON network and Bitcoin; transfers between Patiala and Pune wallets, followed by intermediary wallets and offshore exchanges