CBI brings back 2013 Singapore spoof-call scam accused from the U.S.

The Central Bureau of Investigation has secured the return of a man accused in a spoof-call fraud that targeted Indian nationals living and working in Singapore, ending more than a decade on the run.

Harnek Singh, against whom an Interpol Red Notice and a Look-Out Circular were in force, was deported from the United States. He was taken into CBI custody on arrival at Delhi airport on Wednesday and will be produced before a special court in Panchkula, Haryana.

The agency's Delhi unit registered the case in 2016, invoking charges of conspiracy, cheating, forgery and the use of forged documents as genuine.

Investigators found that during 2013, fraudsters operating from India contacted Indian nationals in Singapore through spoofed calls, posing as officials of the country's immigration authorities. The victims were told they had supplied incorrect information on their disembarkation forms and faced criminal prosecution and deportation. They were then induced to pay purported settlement fees and fines through Western Union Money Transfer to designated receivers in India.

The probe established that the money obtained from the victims was received through a money-transfer outlet run by Harnek Singh along with co-accused Aditya Bhardwaj and Deepak Jain.

Harnek Singh left India in May 2013 and later entered the United States illegally, remaining a fugitive for over ten years, the agency said. The trial of Bhardwaj and Jain concluded before the Panchkula court, and both were convicted on May 26, 2025.

Summons and a bailable warrant were served on Harnek Singh in the United States through the U.S. Department of Justice, but he did not appear before the trial court, prompting it to issue an open-dated non-bailable warrant of arrest. The CBI then pursued the matter through Interpol channels, leading to the Red Notice against him, while a Look-Out Circular was also opened.