Mumbai: The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad on Thursday busted two illegal telephone exchanges in Thane district, which were being run using SIM boxes. Five people were arrested in connection with the case.
According to ATS officers, the raids were conducted based on a tip-off. An officer said, “Based on the information received, we first raided a house in Azad Nagar, Thane and arrested two brothers who were running an illegal telephone exchange. Five SIM boxes, 139 SIM cards and three routers were seized from them during the raid.”
Information given by the arrested accused during interrogation led the ATS to another house in Mumbra, where three accused were allegedly running a similar racket. The officer said, “Our teams seized five more SIM boxes, 95 SIM cards and three routers from the house. Both raids were conducted in the presence of an officer from the Prosecution Branch of the Department of Telecommunications.”
All five accused have been charged under the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, the Indian Wireless and Telegraph Act, 1933 and the IPC, and inquiries have revealed the involvement of two more accused in the rackets. Both accused are absconding.
A SIM box routes international calls through local SIM cards, helping the caller evade international call tariff and leading to loss of revenue for authorised service providers. The officer added, “Losses to the national exchequer due to the illegal telephone exchanges are estimated at ₹58 crore. The arrested accused were produced in court, which remanded in police custody till April 24. We are questioning them.”
