In a major crackdown, cybercrime authorities from the Maharashtra Police rescued 60 Indian citizens who were trapped in Myanmar and coerced into engaging in cyber fraud under the false promise of lucrative overseas employment.
The cyber cell has also apprehended five individuals, among them a foreign national, who were allegedly responsible for facilitating the trafficking operation.
The investigation revealed that the victims were misled into traveling to Thailand and subsequently smuggled into Myanmar, where they were forced to execute online frauds such as digital arrests and deceptive investment scams. The entire operation revolved around exploiting job seekers through social media, with the traffickers baiting them with high-income opportunities in Thailand and other East Asian nations.
Once a target was convinced, the agents handled every logistical detail, from securing passports and booking flights to arranging tourist visas for Thailand. After landing there, the victims were covertly transported to the Thai-Myanmar border, made to cross rivers in small boats, and finally delivered to tightly guarded compounds under the control of armed rebel factions.
Inside these restricted zones, the captives were compelled to operate cybercrime setups at scale, executing fraudulent activities including impersonation-based scams and investment cons. Officials stated that these “digital arrest” scams were a significant part of the operation, where victims were manipulated into believing they were in legal trouble to extort money.
Among those arrested is Manish Grey, known in the entertainment industry as Maddy, who has appeared in web series and television programs. Authorities identified him as one of the five alleged recruiters involved in the trafficking-cum-cybercrime syndicate. The other accused are Taisan alias Aaditya Ravi Chandran, Rupnarayan Ramdhar Gupta, Jensi Rani D, and Talaniti Nulaxi, a dual national of China and Kazakhstan.
As per the investigators, “Grey and his associates lured unsuspecting individuals and facilitated their trafficking to Myanmar under the guise of overseas job opportunities.” They further disclosed that Talaniti Nulaxi was allegedly planning to establish a cybercrime unit in India.
