New Delhi: Delhi Police have arrested eight persons allegedly associated with a cybercrime syndicate operating across Delhi-NCR and several parts of the country, detecting suspicious financial transactions amounting to nearly ₹15 crore, an official said on Tuesday.
According to police, the syndicate was being remotely controlled by operators based in China through social media platforms. Banking credentials were allegedly shared online, and malicious APK files were used to bypass one-time passwords, enabling fraudulent transactions.
The accused are suspected to have run a multi-layered operation involving mule bank accounts to channel proceeds from cyber fraud. During the crackdown, police recovered ₹4.70 lakh in cash, 14 mobile phones, 20 SIM cards and seven debit cards from their possession.
The case came to light after a woman from Tamil Nadu lodged a complaint on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, stating that ₹6,000 had been fraudulently transferred from her bank account in September last year. Analysis revealed that the beneficiary account, held at a private bank branch in east Delhi, was a mule account operated by a resident of Ghaziabad.
Subsequently, an FIR was registered at Pandav Nagar police station. Investigations revealed that the prime accused and his associates were part of an organised cybercrime network, with at least 85 mule bank accounts traced across multiple banks and more than 600 complaints on the NCRP linked to the group so far.
A detailed analysis of bank statements, internet banking activity and IP addresses led police to arrest eight accused from Delhi, Ghaziabad, Moradabad, Bareilly, Rampur and Maharashtra.
Police said the accused facilitated mule accounts and helped siphon off proceeds of cyber fraud, which were later converted into cryptocurrency, primarily USDT. Efforts are ongoing to identify victims, trace the money trail and track the foreign handlers involved in the racket.
