Rs 14 crore routed through mule accounts; 7 cyber fraudsters arrested in Odisha

In a major breakthrough in a cyber fraud investigation, Jharsuguda Police on Saturday arrested seven persons for allegedly routing more than Rs 14 crore through mule bank accounts in connection with a cyber cheating racket.

The arrests were made in connection with a cyber fraud case registered in Belpahar under Jharsuguda district. Police apprehended the alleged kingpin of the racket from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh. Along with the main accused, six other individuals have been taken into custody for their involvement in the operation.

Transferred Through Cryptocurrency Platforms

According to police sources, the fraud network had suspected international links and was using foreign SIM cards to carry out the scams. The accused allegedly used middlemen to open bank accounts in the names of unsuspecting individuals. These accounts, often current accounts, were then used to channel fraudulent funds. The money was subsequently withdrawn or transferred through cryptocurrency platforms to obscure the trail.

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Investigators revealed that mule account holders were paid a commission of 0.8 per cent of the defrauded amount for allowing their accounts to be used for illegal transactions.

Nexus With Bank Employee

In a related development, Laikera Police have also arrested an employee of a finance company in a separate but connected case. Police officials stated that combined transactions in both cases exceed Rs 14 crore. Further investigation is underway to uncover the full extent of the cyber fraud network and identify additional accomplices.

"We have arrested the main broker who is from UP's Ghaziabad. The other accused are from Brajarajnagar and some places under the Sadar police station. Till now, we have arrested 7 people in this mule account case. During probe, we learnt that a small finance bank employee is in nexus with the broker. Fraudulent transactions to the tune of over 9 crore has been carried out in the accounts," informed Jharsuguda SP GR Raghavendra.