BHUBANESWAR: The Special Task Force (STF) of Odisha Crime Branch on Sunday took over investigation of the illegal SIM box case detected at Berhampur by Gopalpur Police.
A five-member team will proceed to Berhampur and interrogate the four accused who were running the illegal mini telephone exchange which was used by underworld don Chhota Rajan’s gang.
Special DG of Crime Branch Bijay Kumar Sharma said the STF will probe how the SIMs used in the illegal devices were activated and if the service provider had knowledge about it.
“We will also try to ascertain the nexus of the operators of the SIM boxes with the underworld. But the service providers will come under the scanner first because the SIM cards are issued by them. The verification process will be checked,” he said.
Use of such SIM boxes is apparently rampant in the country. Since these devices ensure that there is no data recorded on the servers, the rates become cheaper. People use these exchanges purely through word-of-mouth advertisement. Sharma said the STF will look to find out who provided data connection and where the servers are located.
The FIR filed by Gopalpur police stated that the illegal telephone exchange was facilitating international calls and had linkages with organised criminal groups. During investigation, it had found that Chhota Rajan’s henchman Suresh Pujari had called a realtor seeking a `two crore extortion using this exchange.
The matter had come to fore after Mumbai Crime Branch arrested some members of the Rajan gang. A team had come to Berhampur in this connection after which Gopalpur Police went after the four.
The team of officials has drawn officers from STF and EOW, including cyber investigators. An additional SP is heading the unit. The accused will be brought on remand for custodial interrogation.