Gujarat: 8 held in multicity crackdown on Rs 288cr cyberfraud network

Ahmedabad: The Cyber Centre of Excellence (CCoE), Gandhinagar, busted a cyberfraud network involving over Rs 288 crore and arrested eight accused from Unjha, Bhavnagar, Rajkot and Surat as part of "Operation Mule Hunt 2.0", according to a Gujarat police release on Wednesday.Officials said the accused opened mule bank accounts in the names of firms and individuals, routed proceeds of cyber fraud through these accounts, converted the money into cash and transferred it via angadia channels to obscure the trail. The operation was carried out under the supervision of senior CID Crime officials following directives to intensify action against rising cyber offences.In Surat and Bhavnagar, two accused — Mukesh Mer, 23, and Fardin Pathan, 22, — were arrested. Investigators found links to 181 cyberfraud complaints and 81 FIRs across states, involving over Rs 174 crore. Seized items include four mobile phones and a laptop. Data recovered revealed details of 125 firms, 65 IDs and 868 fake invoices.From Unjha, Akshay Patel and Devendra Patel were arrested for allegedly opening multiple bank accounts and facilitating transactions for commission. Their accounts were linked to 125 cyberfraud complaints involving over Rs 114 crore.In Rajkot, police seized six mobile phones and Rs 40 lakh cash. The accounts linked to the accused were found connected to 26 complaints and one FIR, involving around Rs 59 lakh.Police said the accused knowingly handled proceeds of crime, using layers of accounts and informal money transfer systems to evade detection. Fraud types linked to the network include online financial frauds, UPI scams, internet banking frauds, investment and deposit frauds.Over the past month, CCoE arrested 40 accused individuals as part of the operation, uncovering cyberfraud worth Rs 622 crore across 1,039 complaints nationwide. Further investigation is underway.
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