Operation CyHawk 4.0: Over 600 held, 8,000 rounded up in Delhi

New Delhi, Apr 8 (PTI) The Delhi Police has arrested over 600 people and rounded up more than 8,300 suspects during its Operation CyHawk 4.0, a large-scale crackdown on cybercrime conducted on April 6 and 7, officials said on Wednesday.

A senior police officer said the son of a Delhi-based eatery chain owner is also among arrestees.

“Due to losses in business, the son of the famous eater chain’s owner provided his bank account to move proceeds of cybercrime on a commission basis, where he received a three per cent commission. He shared his bank account user ID and password, and stolen or defrauded money was siphoned through that account. In this case, we have arrested Javed, and further investigation is ongoing,” Joint Commissioner of Police (IFSO)

Rajneesh Gupta during a press conference said.

The officer said the operation targeted the financial backbone and operational ecosystem of organised cybercrime syndicates operating across the capital, marking a shift from reactive policing to proactive dismantling of cyber fraud modules.

“A total of 8,371 people were rounded up for questioning and verification during coordinated raids carried out simultaneously across multiple districts. Out of these, 1,429 accused were either arrested or bound down after investigators established strong financial and technical linkages to cyber fraud activities,” the officer said.

In addition, 2,203 notices were issued to individuals suspected of being part of the backward financial chain associated with such crimes, he added.

Police said the operation led to the registration of 499 fresh FIRs against identified cyber fraudsters, significantly expanding the scope of legal action against organised networks.

Besides the new cases, investigators were able to make breakthroughs in 324 previously pending cyber fraud cases, with several accused apprehended after linking them to digital and financial evidence gathered during the operation.

The crackdown specifically targeted the financial architecture of cybercrime, including mule bank accounts used to siphon and layer defrauded money, agents involved in cash withdrawals, and organised call centres executing various online scams.

“As part of the action, several illegal call centres operating in different parts of Delhi were identified and neutralised, thereby halting ongoing frauds involving fake job offers, digital arrest scams, telemarketing fraud, customer-care impersonation,” the officer said.

During the investigation, police were able to link 3,564 complaints registered on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) to identified mule accounts and suspected mobile numbers.

“More than Rs 519 crore of defrauded money reported through complaints across the country was traced to bank accounts associated with organised cyber fraud networks,” the officer said.

He further said raids were conducted at multiple locations resulting in the recovery of a large volume of incriminating digital evidence, including mobile phones, laptops, hard drives, SIM cards, debit and credit cards, as well as financial records and ledgers.

The operation was carried out with support from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs, following a nearly month-long intelligence build-up involving hotspot mapping, analysis of suspicious transactions, verification of bank accounts, and correlation of data with complaints from across the country, the officer said.

“The real-time analytical support provided by I4C played a crucial role in converting intelligence inputs into actionable enforcement,” he added.

Delhi Police has also issued a public advisory urging citizens to remain vigilant against online fraud and avoid sharing banking details, OTPs, or personal information with unknown persons.

The officer said similar intelligence-driven operations will be conducted at regular intervals to keep cyber criminals under sustained pressure. PTI BM ARB ARB