ATM skimming: Two from Mumbai, 1 Nigerian nabbed

Pune: The Pune cybercrime police have arrested two Mumbai residents from Nashik and a Nigerian national from Handewadi in Hadapsar on the charge of installing skimmers and pinhole cameras at various ATM kiosks in the city.

“We have recovered Rs38,000 in cash, 359 cloned cards of various banks, 13 skimmers, 12 digital pinhole cameras, two walkie-talkies, 15 micro batteries, a card printer, four laptops and other electronic gadgets from Mohammed Akil Adil Bhoraniya (37) and Mohammed Faizan Farooq Chhatriwala (37), both residents of Dongri in Mumbai,” Pune police commissioner Amitabh Gupta said on Thursday evening.

“Chhatriwala is an electrical engineering diploma holder and has knowledge about electronic circuits,” Gupta said.

A police team headed by deputy commissioner of police (cyber) Bhagyashri Navatake and inspector Rajkumar Wakchaure received information about unidentified people installing skimmers and pinhole cameras at various ATM units in Camp, Hadapsar and adjoining areas.

The police team also got to know that data of some cards were stolen and cash withdrawn with cloned cards in Nashik in the last week of November. A police team was sent to Nashik to keep a track of any transaction involving cloned cards. The police arrested Bhoraniya and Chhatriwala on December 6 evening.

Gupta said, “Chhatriwala and his gang members, including Bhoraniya, had installed skimmers and pinhole cameras at several ATM units in Mumbai, Thane (Kalwa and Mumbra), Hyderabad, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. Chhatriwala was arrested by the Kalwa police in 2017. But after securing bail, he first went to Nepal and then to Dubai. He stayed in Dubai for two years. But after returning to India, he again started the illegal activity.”

On being questioned, the duo revealed they had installed skimmers and cameras at five ATM kiosks in the city in November. “There are possibilities that Chhatriwala and Bhoraniya might have had installed skimmers and cameras at more ATM units in the city,” said Ashok Morale, additional commissioner of police (crime).

On Tuesday evening, the police arrested Nigerian national Lucas William (31) from Handewadi while he was installing a skimmer and pinhole camera at an ATM unit.

The police recovered from him six cloned ATM cards, two skimmers, several micro chips and other electronic gadgets used to execute the crime. Wakchaure said William was staying illegally in India for the past six years.

Joint commissioner of police Ravindra Shishve said “All the incidents occurred at the unmanned ATM kiosks. There is a need of awareness among the bank authorities. We will conduct meetings with them and tell them to beef up security at the ATM kiosks to avert such incidents. We will also tell them to paste awareness stickers or posters in the kiosks for the people to check if any extended equipment has been attached to the units.”