The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested three people in southern Assam’s Cachar district for the sale of unauthorised SIM cards used in cybercrimes.

A statement issued by the agency on Thursday (August 28, 2025) said the three, including the territorial sales manager of a private telecom company, were held after searches at five locations in the district.

The telecom executive was identified as Debasish Doley. CBI officials said the other two, Mahim Uddin Barbhuiya and Ashim Purkayastha, were middlemen.

“The CBI has been pursuing a case involving the unauthorised sale of SIM cards across the country. These were being used to commit cybercrimes such as digital arrest frauds, impersonation, fraudulent advertisements, investment scams, and UPI-related frauds,” a spokesperson of the agency said.

“Following an investigation, we found out that the territorial sales manager operating from Silchar town has been colluding with middlemen, distributors, and point-of-sale agents to issue SIM cards illegally without the knowledge of people in whose names these SIM cards were being used,” he said.

The modus operandi involved bulk-selling the SIM cards to the middlemen at a high cost for use in cybercrimes, the spokesperson said.

CBI officials said that the three accused were taken to the local magistrate, and remand was obtained.