Two Arrested In Gujarat Over Bank Accounts Linked To Cyber Fraud
Two men allegedly supplied corporate accounts to cyber fraudsters.
Gujarat Police have arrested two men from Mehsana district for allegedly providing corporate bank accounts with Bulk Mode facilities to a cyber fraud syndicate. The arrests were carried out by the Cyber Centre of Excellence (CCoE) under Operation Mule Hunt 2.0, as investigators traced the accounts to cyber fraud complaints involving nearly Rs 1.5 crore across several states.
The accused have been identified as Parth Barot, a resident of Ramnagar Society on Kamana Road in Visnagar, and Rameshkumar Lavana, who lives near Dipda Darwaja and Ashapuri Mata Temple in the town. Police apprehended both men in Visnagar before formally arresting them and initiating legal proceedings under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act.
According to investigators, Barot and Lavana allegedly obtained bank accounts from individuals and passed their details to the cybercrime network in exchange for commissions. The accounts were targeted because they had Bulk Mode facilities, which can allow multiple transactions or payments to be processed simultaneously. Such facilities are commonly associated with corporate and current accounts operated through corporate internet banking.
Also Read: Delhi Police Trace Interstate Cyber Fraud Network Through Stolen Phone
Police alleged that the accused approached account holders and collected sensitive banking and identity-related documents, including Aadhaar and PAN details, cheque-book photographs, ATM card images and internet banking credentials. They allegedly verified the accounts and checked whether the online banking details could be used to access them before forwarding the information to the syndicate.
Investigators also found that some account holders were allegedly persuaded to install APK files on their devices, allowing the syndicate to carry out transactions without directly obtaining one-time passwords. The police described the two arrested men as facilitators who connected account holders with the wider cyber fraud network. Two mobile phones were also seized during the investigation.
The CCoE checked bank account details recovered from the accused against the 1930 cybercrime reporting portal and the Samanvay portal. The verification identified cyber fraud complaints totalling approximately Rs 1.5 crore, with 22 acknowledgement numbers linked to the accounts across India, including six in Gujarat. Two of the identified cases involved digital-arrest complaints registered in Maharashtra. Police said six accused had already been arrested in the case and efforts were continuing to identify and trace other members of the network.
Also Read: Nepal May Have Lost Papers Of 1816 Treaty Linked To India Border Claim
