India, April 9 -- KANPUR The orchard near the Lale Baba temple in Kanpur's Rathi village was known for two things: the shade of its trees and crisp mobile phone reception. To most, that strong signal was merely a minor rural convenience. But to a syndicate of school dropouts, those invisible telecom waves were the lifeblood of a sprawling, multi-state criminal enterprise.

But on Tuesday evening, Kanpur police used this 'better connectivity' against them. Over 200 personnel, guided by drones, encircled the orchard before anyone could move. Inside, teenagers and youths aged 15 to 22, who had worked in cotton mills in Tamil Nadu's Erode, were sitting in tents, calling strangers across five states and posing as government/police officials. T...