Berhampur, Dec 6: A 36-year-old man from Chhattisgarh has been arrested for allegedly operating at least five ‘mule’ bank accounts in the names of unsuspecting residents of Berhampur, Odisha police said on Friday.
The accused — a resident of Bhilai in Durg district — opened the fraudulent accounts in three private banks in April 2023. Investigators estimate that around ₹10 lakh has been routed through these accounts so far.
‘Mule accounts’ are bank accounts used to receive and transfer money generated from illegal activities, often forming a key part of cyber fraud and money-laundering networks.
Police seized bank passbooks, cheque books, ATM cards and mobile phones from the accused during the arrest. Preliminary investigation suggests he was involved in cybercrime activities across multiple states, including Rohtak and Gurugram in Haryana, Kotwali in Uttar Pradesh, and Hanumanagar in Rajasthan, the police said.
The arrest followed an extensive probe into 346 suspected mule accounts through the Samanvaya portal of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
During verification, a police team identified the accused as the operator of five such accounts. Further investigation revealed that he had visited relatives in Berhampur two years ago, during which he opened bank accounts using the identities of three local residents, luring them with false promises of jobs in a finance company. Trusting his offer, they opened accounts in their names and later handed over the documents to him.
