Chittagong Metropolitan Police’s (CMP) Counter Terrorism Unit and Khulshi police have arrested 63 foreign nationals allegedly involved in an international online fraud gang from a rented house in the Khulshi area of the city.
The arrested individuals include citizens of China, Pakistan, Laos, Nepal and Vietnam.
Police also recovered 134 mobile phones; 57 laptops and other electronic devices and equipment allegedly used for online fraud and other digital crimes.
CMP Additional Police Commissioner (Crime and Operations) Muhammad Faisal Ahmed disclosed the information at a press conference at the CMP Dampara Police Lines on Friday.
He said a specialized team of the Counter Terrorism Unit, with assistance from Khulshi police, conducted the operation around 3:50pm on Thursday based on a tip-off at a building on Road 4 of the Jalalabad Krishnachura Residential Area under Khulshi police station.
The suspects had rented the house about one and a half months ago, he said. The house belongs to a Bangladeshi expatriate living in Dubai.
“Staying at the house, they had been carrying out organized online fraud activities,” the police officer said.
He said the group had also been staying in rented houses in different parts of Bangladesh for a long time and using various digital platforms and websites to commit fraud and other criminal activities.
According to police, the gang had several local and foreign associates who helped it carry out organized criminal activities safely and without obstruction in Bangladesh.
Preliminary interrogation revealed that some unidentified associates are currently staying in different parts of the country, including Chittagong. Police are working to identify and arrest them.
Police said the arrested individuals and their associates had been using information technology to commit financial fraud and forgery and illegally misappropriate money. They were also accused of carrying out various criminal activities through e-transactions outside legal authority.
The seized items included 134 old and used mobile phones of various brands, 57 laptops, a used Apple tablet, a white CPU, a black Samsung monitor, a keyboard, a mouse and a black printer. Five pen drives and four SIM cards were also recovered.
Police also recovered three Pakistani national identity cards and a Cambodian employment card.
The devices are being analyzed to determine the gang’s activities, its local and foreign associates and the methods allegedly used in the fraud, police said.
Legal proceedings against the arrested individuals are being initiated with Khulshi police station. The investigation is also continuing to identify and arrest other associates linked to the gang.
CMP Additional Police Commissioner Muhammad Faisal Ahmed said the matter was being investigated seriously as an organized group of foreign nationals had been staying in Bangladesh and using online platforms to commit fraud and financial crimes.
“The gang’s international connections and financial transactions will also be brought under investigation,” he said.