Gandhinagar, July 11 (IANS) Gujarat Police’s Cyber Centre of Excellence (CCoE) has arrested 19 people in three separate investigations under “Operation Mule Hunt 2.0”, uncovering alleged cyber crime networks involving mule bank accounts, fake business entities and corporate bank accounts allegedly used to facilitate cyber fraud linked to more than Rs 330 crore across multiple states.

According to the officials, the three investigations relate to separate cases registered in Gandhinagar and involve alleged cyber fraud networks operating from Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Surat and other locations.

In the first investigation, police announced six fresh arrests across three FIRs. Four more accused were arrested during further investigation into a mule account racket operating from Vadodara, taking the total number of accused proceeded against in the case to eight.

The newly arrested accused were identified as Toufiq Ahmed Rathod, Aftab Saiyed, Hasnain alias Shadab Pathan and Arkan Shaikh, all residents of Vadodara.

Police alleged that they collected mule bank accounts and passed them through different members of the network before forwarding them to other accused, including absconding suspects.

Police said verification of the bank accounts on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCCRP) showed links to 101 acknowledgement numbers and 21 FIRs registered in different states, with alleged cyber fraud exceeding Rs 46 crore. Four mobile phones were seized.

In the second registered case, the police arrested Sagar Amrutiya of Vastral, Ahmedabad, alleging that he opened and collected mule accounts through fake business entities before forwarding them to an absconding accused.

Police said one accused had already been arrested earlier in the case and Amrutiya was the second arrest.

Investigators alleged that fake firms were used to open current accounts at banks, linked to 253 acknowledgement numbers involving alleged cybercrimes worth more than Rs 161 crore across different states.

“Amrutiya had previously been arrested four times in criminal cases, allegedly operated from Dubai and was planning to restart his network in Ahmedabad. One of the fake firms is called Chamunda Communication,” officials said.

In the third case, Abhilash Mishra, a resident of Vadodara, was arrested for allegedly making more than 10 of his bank accounts available to co-accused involved in a mule account racket.

According to police, he opened the accounts while studying for an MBA at Parul University along with another student.

Investigators said the accounts were linked to 28 acknowledgement numbers and eight FIRs registered in different states involving alleged cyber fraud of more than Rs 7.40 crore. Two mobile phones were seized.

In the second investigation, the Cyber Centre arrested six alleged associates of an interstate syndicate accused of supplying corporate bank accounts with bulk transaction facilities.

The accused were identified as Ankurkumar Chaudhary of Mehsana district, Chetan Patel of Visnagar, Kirankumar Panchal of Ahmedabad, Suresh Rabari of Ahmedabad, Rajkumar Rawal of Ahmedabad and Akshaysinh Parmar of Mumbai.

According to investigators, the accused had gathered to obtain and verify bank accounts online when a raid was conducted, resulting in their arrest before any funds could allegedly be transferred.

Police alleged that the first three accused procured corporate bank accounts and supplied them to a syndicate, while Rabari and Rawal verified the accounts through APK files and login screen recordings before forwarding them.

Parmar allegedly acted as an intermediary between the syndicate and other members. Investigators said checks on the 1930 Portal and Samanvay Portal found 22 acknowledgement numbers linked to the recovered accounts, including six from Gujarat, with complaints involving about Rs 1.5 crore.

Two of the linked cases registered in Maharashtra involved alleged digital arrest fraud.

Police alleged the group identified corporate accounts with bulk transaction facilities, persuaded account holders to provide Aadhaar and PAN details, cheque book images, ATM card photographs and internet banking credentials in return for commission, and installed APK files to facilitate access before supplying the accounts to the syndicate. Seven mobile phones were seized.

In the third investigation, police arrested seven accused for allegedly creating fake firms, opening more than 18 bank accounts and supplying them for cyber fraud operations linked to more than Rs 116 crore across 21 states.

The accused were identified as Rakesh Pokal, Gautam Savani, Jaydeep alias Jayesh Savani, Mayur Tejani, Akshay Kathiriya, Mayur Savani and Henil Narola, all residents of Surat.

According to police, the investigation found that three partners operated the alleged network from offices in Mota Varachha and Jahangirpura in Surat.

Investigators alleged that fake firms, including Pokaarchtex (OPC) Private Limited, Genram (OPC) Private Limited and TRAN CHHAR TECH (OPC) Private Limited, were created to open more than 18 bank accounts in different banks.

The account kits and SIM cards linked to the accounts were allegedly supplied to associates, who used them to receive cyber-fraud proceeds before transferring or withdrawing the funds in exchange for commissions.

Police said verification of the accounts on the 1930 Portal and Samanvay Portal found 146 acknowledgement numbers nationwide, including 14 from Gujarat, linked to alleged cyber fraud exceeding Rs 116 crore.

Investigators alleged that the offences included investment fraud, UPI-related fraud, deposit fraud and trading fraud. They also stated that Gautam Savani had previously been arrested in cases registered under Sections 307 and 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

Thirteen mobile phones were seized in the third case. The Cyber Centre of Excellence said investigations in all three cases are continuing.

–IANS

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