Three held in CBI drive against mule account network across seven States

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested three key accused linked to the mule account network used by cyber fraud syndicates in searches conducted across seven States on Wednesday.

As part of ‘Operation Chakra-V,’ the agency searched multiple locations in Delhi, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, and Rajasthan. The agency seized mobile phones, documents used to open bank accounts, transaction records, and KYC papers.

“The operation has led to the arrest of three individuals for their active role in facilitating and operating mule bank accounts used to channel and conceal proceeds of various cyber frauds,” it said.

37 booked

Acting on specific information, the CBI registered a case on June 25 against 37 accused persons, including mule account holders, middlemen, and bank employees who allegedly colluded with cybercriminals. The agency carried out two rounds of searches at 40 locations in different States on June 26-27 and arrested 10 accused persons.

“The CBI has adopted a strategic approach in the fight against cybercrime, focusing on targeting the key pillars of the cybercrime infrastructure. The first pillar is the financial infrastructure, involving mule accounts, unauthorised payment gateways, and the wider fintech ecosystem misused by cybercriminals. The second pillar is the telecom/communication infrastructure involving mule SIM cards, point-of-sale (PoS) agents facilitating illegal SIM activations, and networks supplying such SIM cards,” said the agency.

It said, “The third pillar is the human resource network, which consists of organised syndicates engaged in the recruitment and exploitation of people to execute cybercrimes, otherwise known as ‘cyber slavery.’ The third pillar most of the time operates outside the boundaries of India.”