Delhi Police bust fake call centre offering airline jobs, arrest 3

Delhi Police say three people ran a fake call centre in Laxmi Nagar to offer bogus airline jobs for money. The case highlights how job seekers are being targeted through UPI-based recruitment frauds.Police said the trio was allegedly running a call centre from Laxmi Nagar to target job seekers. (Representative image)Delhi Police have arrested three people, including two women, after busting an alleged fake call centre in east Delhi that promised airline jobs to job seekers in return for money. Police said the accused posed as HR representatives of an airline company and offered ground-duty jobs before asking victims to pay registration and other employment-related charges through UPI.The three arrested have been identified as Mohammad Zaid, 30, Sadaf, 24, and Tanisha, 21, all from Delhi. Police said the case surfaced after a Chhattisgarh resident complained on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal that he had been offered a job for Rs 14,000 by a person posing as an HR representative.The complainant transferred Rs 14,500 through UPI but later realised he had been cheated. “During the inquiry, the money trail was traced to a bank account from which the amount was withdrawn through an ATM in east Delhi. An FIR was subsequently registered on August 20,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) Rajeev Kumar said.During the investigation, police found that the bank account was in Zaid’s name. His movements were tracked and he was arrested from Laxmi Nagar. His questioning then led police to Sadaf and Tanisha. Police said the trio was allegedly running a call centre from Laxmi Nagar to target job seekers. “The accused used multiple mobile numbers to contact prospective victims, impersonated as HR personnel of the airlines company and offered them ground-duty positions,” the officer said. Victims were asked to transfer money to different bank accounts through UPI, after which the cash was withdrawn from nearby ATMs and shared among the accused, he added.Police said Sadaf had allegedly been running the call centre for about three months. During a search, police recovered six smartphones, three keypad mobile phones with multiple SIM cards, cash from Sadaf, and the SIM allegedly used in the present case. They also found two other complaints on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal linked to mobile numbers allegedly used by the accused. Police said Zaid is a school dropout and was unemployed, while Sadaf had dropped out in the second year of her BA course. Tanisha is a Class 12 pass and had first started working with Sadaf before allegedly becoming involved in the fraud. Further investigation is underway.- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 24, 2026 13:09 IST