Gondal APMC firm remitted 380cr of cyberfraud proceeds

Rajkot: The Cyber Crime cell of Rajkot Rural police unearthed a major "mule account" racket, arresting six men and detecting deposits of Rs 380 crore of cyberfraud proceeds that were routed through their bank accounts over 18 months.Those arrested are Jay Nadpara, Manish Kamani, Praveensingh Parmar, Mahendrasinh Jadeja, Mayursingh Vaghela and an alleged mediator Rushit Raiyani. Police are searching for the suspected mastermind, Aadiluddin, and three absconding accused — Lala alias Yagnik Zalawadia, Harshil Shah and Bharatsinh Parmar. According to police, Nadpara, Kamani and Parmar were running a firm at the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) market yard in Gondal and used its bank accounts for cyberfraud transactions. Jadeja and Vaghela ran an angadia firm, while Raiyani acted as a mediator, helping channel funds to Aadiluddin in Hyderabad. A case was filed at Padadhri police station by head constable Prakash Dangar under BNS Sections 317(2), 317(5), 318(4), 61(2), 54, along with provisions of the Information Technology Act. The investigation began after 65 cyberfraud complaints were lodged on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal against the bank account of "Jyot Trading", an APMC-licensed firm based in the Gondal market Yard. Preliminary findings show that Rs 380 crore was deposited into the current accounts linked to the arrested individuals, including Kamani, Parmar and Nadpara, in 18 months. Rajkot Rural superintendent of police Vijaysingh Gurjar said suspicious transactions were first noticed in accounts operated under APMC licences at the Gondal APMC market yard. The modus operandi involved using APMC licences to camouflage large fraudulent deposits. Police said Jay Nadpara, the owner of Jyot Trading and Som Enterprise, confessed to operating six current accounts under APMC licences. He admitted that the APMC cover was used to portray the massive deposits as agricultural payments, helping evade income tax scrutiny and enabling high-volume cash withdrawals. He allegedly joined the racket through his friend Manish Kamani, who guided him and offered a commission of Rs 200 for every Rs 1 lakh routed. The accused allegedly withdrew cash and sent it to the perpetrators through angadia channels. Investigators said Raiyani is believed to have made Rs 10 lakh over 10 months. His role was to convince people to rent out their bank accounts for routing of cyberfraud proceeds and coordinate the operation. The racket has tentacles across the country, with around 130 cyberfraud complaints tied to these accounts. Police say the perpetrators were operating from Hyderabad. Victims have been identified in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Kerala, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh. Inspector Ravi Godham said, "The total commission earned by the three main accused — Kamani, Parmar and Nadpara — runs into several crores." Police launched a search for the absconding suspects and are examining the money trail.Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Valentine's day wishes, messages and gift idea !