Delhi Police busts interstate gangs supplying mule bank accounts to cybercrooks; 9 arrested

Delhi Police has busted two inter-state cyberfraud rackets involved in supplying mule bank accounts used for online financial crimes, including investment frauds, part-time job scams and digital arrest, officials said on Thursday.

Nine accused were arrested after coordinated raids in Delhi, Gurugram, Jaipur and Ghaziabad under the ‘Cyhawk Operation’, police said.

“The rackets were operating in a highly-structured manner, using layered banking channels, social media platforms and encrypted messaging applications to launder money cheated from victims across the country.

Eight mobile phones, eight SIM cards and digital evidence were recovered during the operation,” DCP (North) Raja Banthia said in a statement.

In the first case, police registered an FIR after a 21-year-old Delhi University student complained that he was cheated of Rs 93,000 after being lured into a fake part-time job.

The victim was initially paid small amounts to gain his confidence before being induced to transfer large sums to multiple bank accounts.

During the investigation, police analysed call detail records (CDRs), IMEI data and money trails, leading to the arrest of three accused in Rajasthan.

Police said the accused opened bank accounts and supplied net banking credentials, SIM cards and corporate IDs to other fraudsters in exchange for commission.

In the second case, technical surveillance and bank trail analysis revealed that proceeds from multiple cyberfraud complaints registered on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) were being routed through a common set of mule accounts, including one maintained at a public sector bank in north Delhi.

“Further analysis established links with at least five separate cyberfraud complaints, prompting the registration of a fresh FIR. Six more accused were arrested in this case,” the DCP said.

The officer said the accused acted as handlers, coordinators and account providers. They procured individual and corporate mule accounts, managed ATM and cheque withdrawals, layered funds through multiple accounts and converted the money into cryptocurrency, primarily USDT, through social media-based buyers.

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The arrested accused have been identified as Himanshu Sharma (24), Chatra Abhijeet Lamba (22) and Sahil Joshi (23), all residents of Rajasthan; Mannu (23), Ajay (25), Parveen and Piyush from Delhi; and Aniket (22) and Ganesh Rathi (25) from Ghaziabad.

The rackets relied heavily on social media platforms to connect with the buyers, sellers and account providers while attempting to conceal their digital footprint. The accused frequently changed locations to evade arrest, the DCP said.