Inter-State cyber crime racket busted, 7 held

Bhubaneswar: Rourkela Police on Monday busted an inter-State cyber crime racket and arrested seven alleged fraudsters, including a bank employee, who used to open mule bank accounts that were sold or rented to cyber criminals across the country and launder money defrauded from unsuspecting victims.

Police sources said the gang was primarily engaged in the procurement and operation of mule bank accounts opened in the names of residents, mainly from Rourkela and nearby areas. “The gang arranged bank accounts, activated SIM cards and identity cards of unsuspecting individuals. They often used forged documents and impersonation. Many accounts were opened with the tacit approval or negligence of complicit bank staff; bypassing standard Know Your Customer (KYC) norms,” informed the Rourkela Police.

The accused persons later sold or rented those accounts to cyber criminals across India. These accounts were rented or sold for a meagre amount of Rs 5,000-10,000 per account, which was then distributed among the members of the syndicate. These mule accounts were used as pass-through accounts to receive fraudulent proceeds from cyber crime victims. The funds were eventually siphoned off both within India and abroad through laundering.

The investigating officers also found during the course of the investigation that these mule accounts were involved in around 200 cyber fraud complaints or cases across India, as ascertained through the SAMANWAYA portal under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Given the volume of accounts opened with forged documents and without adequate scrutiny, the police also suspect the involvement of more bank insiders from different banks.