Lured by cyberscam 'firm', Tamil Nadu engineer went solo, conned Japanese professor

NEW DELHI: A mechanical engineer from Tamil Nadu's Tiruchirappalli, Vigneshwar Muruganandham always aspired to a life of luxury. While his father was a retired government employee, the unemployed 30-year-old was desperate for a high-paying job. However, he ended up on the wrong side of the law as he allegedly became a member of a Chinese cybercrime syndicate in Cambodia.

Last week, as reported by TOI, he was arrested for allegedly duping a Japanese professor from a premier institute in Hauz Khas by 'digitally arresting' her for six hours.


Muruganandham's journey, which he revealed during interrogation, started with the promise of easy money. The Chinese contacts he met online offered him a lucrative opportunity to work with their 'company' in Cambodia. They sent him tickets, and he arrived in the country in April 2024, armed with an array of Indian bank accounts they had asked him to open.

How 'company' trained its 'employees' in cybercrime
At first, everything seemed legitimate. Muruganandham was put up in a hotel, and his new employers used the bank accounts he provided. But as the days passed, he began to realise that something was off. His employers wouldn't tell him how much money was being transacted through the accounts, and he started to feel like a small cog in a larger machine.

As he settled into his new routine, he discovered he was not alone.

There were more than 20 Chinese nationals working alongside him, all of whom were involved in a massive cybercrime operation targeting India and its neighbouring countries, he told police officials.

They called themselves a 'company', and everyone was trained to introduce themselves as 'employees' if asked about it.

The operation was sophisticated, with people from India and other countries brought in to work on computer-related tasks and telecommunications. The camp was monitored closely, with workers divided according to their expertise. Muruganandham's role was to arrange and manage Indian bank accounts, a task he performed diligently for more than a month.

But as time passed, he began to feel uneasy.

He realised there were other groups doing the same work, and they were easily accessible on Telegram channels. So, after spending a month at the camp, he decided to leave the 'company' and strike out on his own.

Back in India, Muruganandham allegedly started supplying bank accounts to other similar cyber scammers based in Cambodia, earning a handsome commission in the process. It was a lucrative business, and he made a huge amount of money before the law caught up with him.

Earliar in Jan, Muruganandham was among five suspects arrested by southwest Delhi police.

DCP (southwest) Surendra Chaudhary said on Monday that Muruganandham was working with Chinese nationals who run a cyber camp in Cambodia and orchestrated cybercrimes overseas.