Gang renting out 'mule bank accounts' to cyber fraud busted in Patna, 7 held

Patna: The Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar Police has busted a gang involved in renting out 'mule bank accounts' to cybercriminals, enabling the transfer of funds from the victims of online fraud. In exchange, the gang earned commissions ranging from 5% to 15%. The operation, which led to the arrest of seven people and the identification of 15 bank accounts involved in transactions exceeding Rs10 crore, highlights the growing nexus between financial desperation, digital exploitation, and organised cybercrime.

According to EOU senior official, the accused have been charged under various sections of the Information Technology Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Investigations are ongoing to trace other cybercriminals lnked to the racket. “Deputy superintendent of police (DSP), cyber operation, received a tip-off about cybercriminals operating from a hotel near Saguna Mor. Acting on this, a special investigation team (SIT) conducted raids and arrested the criminals,” said Manavjit Singh Dhillon, deputy inspector seneral (DIG) of EOU, on Thursday.

The DSP said technical investigations revealed that the gang provided mule accounts to cybercriminals across Bihar and also used their own current accounts for illicit transactions. These mule accounts were often obtained by exploiting innocent people in urgent need of money, under the guise of offering GST refunds or CSC funds. The gang also collaborated with bank employees to open current accounts for small traders in rural areas, which were then misused for cyberfraud.

So far, 15 accounts have been flagged on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) for cybercrime complaints from various states. One account alone has 98 complaints registered against it, indicating the scale of the operation. The arrested people include Amit Kumar of Bettiah in West Champaran district, Durgesh Kumar (Saran), Ravi Prakash (Motihari, East Champaran), Md Rahbar (Bhojpur), Anil Singh (Buxar), Vishal Kumar (Bhojpur), Bhaskar Kumar (Bhojpur).

The DIG said the EOU also seized several cellphones, electronic devices, and two vehicles from the accused persons. The investigation continues to identify further links in this cybercrime network.