Sharjah: Police have arrested 18 men who operated phone scams by targeting victims in the UAE and other Gulf countries.
The Pakistani suspects would call random numbers in each country and convince victims that they had won a cash prize from a reputed telecommunications company.
The victims were then requested to transfer money into the suspects' bank accounts through an exchange centre in order to claim the cash.
"We initially received a complaint from a woman living in a neighbouring country who said that she had transferred Dh200,000 through an exchange centre to a man who claimed to work at a UAE-based telecommunications company. The suspect convinced her that he required the money in order to complete the necessary transactions," a police official said.
Modus operandi
After transferring the money, the victim did not receive any follow-up calls from the suspect.
After obtaining all necessary information from the woman, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at Sharjah Police launched an investigation and discovered that the suspect had a number of accomplices who used a worker's accommodation in Industrial Area 6 as a hub for this activity.
"The accommodation was raided and 18 men who were living in four bedrooms were caught red-handed carrying out the scam," the police official said.
The suspects had entered the country on a visit visa issued by a resident, who collaborated with another Pakistani man to arrange for their accommodation.
Mobiles confiscated
During the raid on Sunday, police confiscated 35 mobiles and a large number of SIM cards in addition to cash.
The case has been transferred to the Sharjah Public Prosecution.
