Bhubaneswar, Sep 24 (IANS) Odisha Police on Thursday arrested three persons for preparing and selling fake SIM cards using customers’ identity documents, officials said.
Sambalpur district police arrested the accused, identified as Suraj Bag (24) of Panchput, Malati Oram alias Mala (29) of Sinapali, and Papu alias Sheikh Parvez (32) of Motijharan in Sambalpur.
Police said they uncovered the racket while investigating case number 34/26 registered at Sambalpur Cyber Police Station on September 22, 2026.
The accused allegedly used customers’ identity documents to prepare multiple SIM cards against a single number. While one SIM was given to the customer, the others were retained and sold to others.
Investigations revealed that some of these SIM cards were being used in cybercrimes in Jamtara, Jharkhand. Police also found that the racket shared the money it generated among those involved.
Items seized included four mobile phones, four active SIM cards, 120 sealed blank Airtel SIM cards, three bank passbooks, a cheque book, an Aadhaar card, a PhonePe QR code scanner, four affidavits, a house rental agreement, 10 Airtel pamphlets and four Airtel 5G Plus signboards.
Police are continuing their investigation to identify other persons involved, the number of SIM cards prepared and supplied, recipients of the SIM cards, and the money involved.
They are also probing alleged links to Jamtara, which has emerged as a major focus of the investigation.
Officials noted that fake and fraudulently obtained SIM cards are among the key tools cybercriminals use to carry out fraud.
–IANS
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