Gang supplying mule accounts busted in Delhi; bank employee among 3 held

Delhi: A bank officer and two more persons were arrested for allegedly running a mule account racket to route money siphoned off in cyber frauds, police said on Thursday.

The gang allegedly opened around 22 bank accounts in the names of fake firms and individuals and sold them to cyber fraudsters, they said.

The racket was unravelled when a PhD scholar from Delhi University reported to the police that he was allegedly cheated of Rs 1.66 lakh after a promise of high returns through stock market trading.

“The complainant had joined a social media group that shared stock market tips and was lured with the promise of earning Rs 20,000 on an investment of Rs 5,000. After clicking a link shared in the group, he was redirected and was persuaded to transfer money in multiple transactions on the pretext of profit-sharing, verification and processing charges,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Raja Banthia in a statement said.

During their probe, teams tracked a portion of the cheated money to a bank account opened in the name of a garment trading firm. Analysis of around 100 mobile numbers, IMEIs and the money trail across multiple bank accounts eventually led police to three premises in Budh Vihar and Rohini.

On June 2, police arrested Chirag and Amar Yadav, aged 22 and 48, while the alleged kingpin, 28-year-old Nitesh Kumar, was arrested from Moti Nagar on July 8, the officer said.

Kumar, a customer relationship officer with a private bank, exploited his knowledge of banking procedures to facilitate the opening of accounts using forged documents, the officer said.

These accounts were then allegedly supplied to cyber fraudsters through associates in exchange for a commission.

The accused allegedly rented office spaces, prepared fake business documents and induced labourers and other economically weaker persons with cash incentives to allow bank accounts to be opened in their names.

The police have seized seven mobile phones, 14 SIM cards, two passbooks, six cheque books, seven debit cards, a card-swiping machine and several documents from the accused, said the officer.