CHENNAI: After a search of more than two years, a 33-year-old man from Karur, wanted in multiple digital scams including cyber slavery, digital arrest and cheating by recruiting people from Tamil Nadu for cyber slavery operations in Cambodia, was arrested by the West Zone Cyber Crime police in Chennai after he arrived at the Chennai airport from Cambodia on Tuesday.
The suspect, B Ilavarasan, against whom a Look Out Circular (LOC) had been issued, was remanded in judicial custody. The police seized his passport, foreign work permit, Cambodian currency and a mobile phone.
The case stems from a complaint lodged by MK Ezhilvani (59) of Kolathur, who was allegedly duped in February 2024 after fraudsters posing as Delhi Customs and police officials falsely claimed she was linked to a parcel containing passports, ATM cards and MDMA, and to a money laundering case. Fearing arrest, she transferred Rs 2.96 lakh to an HDFC Bank account in Anthiyur, Erode.
The police had arrested Prema and Bala alias Balakrishnan in 2024. Investigators later identified Ilavarasan as an agent for Chinese-run scam centres in Cambodia, arranging Indian bank accounts and luring job seekers with promises of computer-related work before forcing them into cyber fraud operations. The police said he is also wanted in multiple cyber slavery and cheating cases across Tamil Nadu.