Police Reveal SIM-Card Data Falsification Action In Manado

MANADO - The Maleo Special Team of the North Sulawesi Police (North Sulawesi) has uncovered a case of falsification of electronic data using cell phone sim card activation. Four suspects were secured in the disclosure of the case.

"The four suspects are TAK, VRM, FER and AMP," said the Head of Public Relations of the North Sulawesi Police, Kombes Abast, as quoted by Antara, Thursday, July 23.

Abast explained, the suspect TAK is the Branch Manager of PT MDM who acts as the owner of a cellular sim card distributor of a provider. Meanwhile, the VRM, FER and AMP suspects were PT MDM operators who acted as operators who changed / registered sim cards in Manado, Tomohon and Kotamobagu.

The modus operandi carried out by the perpetrators, the suspect TAK as the Branch Manager of PT MDM, distributed all the cellular sim cards to each of the perpetrators who acted as operators.

Namely the VRM suspects for the Manado area, FER for the Tomohon, Minahasa, Southeast Minahasa and South Minahasa areas and AMP for the Kotamobagu and Bolaang Mongondow Raya areas.

Furthermore, the VRM actors search for and collect KTP and KK data via the internet and download the data and submit it to the TAK perpetrator to then share with other FER and AMP operators.

This is used as administrative data completeness to register the intended cellular sim card by using the tools and equipment that the perpetrators have prepared.

"After the cellular sim card has been successfully activated by each actor / operator, all of the sim cards are handed over to the TAK perpetrator to then be distributed for sale to the public," he said.

As for the initial chronology of the disclosure of this case, when a number of Timsus Maleo got a lot of information on mobile phone users whose numbers did not match the data registered in the register. From the investigation, he got information about the activity of falsifying electronic data which was located in the GPI Mapanget Manado residence.

"When the Timsus members came to the location, the police arrested a number of perpetrators who were committing falsification of electronic data, along with evidence," he continued.

Evidence secured for the crime scene (TKP) in Manado City includes 37,040 registered cellular cards that have expired, 3,050 registered cellular cards that are still valid, 6,742 cellular cards ready for registration. Then one modem pool tool (registration tool), one wifi, two computer monitors, one laptop.

The Tomohon TKP consists of 450 registered cellular cards that are still active, one modem pool, and one laptop.

Meanwhile, the Kotamobagu TKP includes 2,000 registered cellular cards that are still active, 300 cellular cards ready for registration, one modem pool and one laptop.

"The perpetrators are threatened with article 51 paragraph (1) in conjunction with article 53 of Law number 11 of 2008 as amended by Law number 19 of 2016 in conjunction with articles 55 and 56 of the Criminal Code with the threat of imprisonment of 12 years," he said.