Rajasthan Police have uncovered a massive Rs500 crore cyber fraud under Operation Cyber Sangram, revealing a racket where bank employees sold customers’ accounts to cybercriminals for large commissions. The Alwar Police recently arrested six more individuals, including four Axis Bank employees and the alleged mastermind, bringing the total arrests in the case to 16.
Superintendent of Police Sudhir Chaudhary stated that the network enabled fraudulent transactions using hundreds of mule accounts involved in scams related to betting, gaming, and cryptocurrency platforms like Binance. Investigations showed these accounts were linked to over Rs500 crore in suspicious transactions and more than 4,000 complaints filed on the NCRP portal.
The newly arrested include:
Varun Patwa (40), the alleged mastermind from Udaipur’s Hiranmagri, now based in Gurugram, Haryana
Satish Kumar Jat (35), associate from Hisar, Haryana
Four Axis Bank employees from Hisar: Sahil Aggarwal (Sales Manager), Gulshan Punjabi (Sales Manager), Asu Sharma (MIB Executive), and Aanchal Jat (Sales Officer)
The accused opened current and corporate accounts using fake companies and documents, paying commissions to customers. These accounts were sold through WhatsApp and Telegram groups to cybercriminals. Bank employees allegedly provided direct access to OTPs and internet banking by linking accounts to new mobile numbers and installing APK files, allowing fraudsters to carry out illegal transactions.
The funds from these accounts were used in betting apps, gaming frauds, and crypto exchanges, facilitating large-scale money laundering.
During raids, police seized Rs2.51 lakh in cash, 26 ATM cards, 33 mobile phones, 34 SIM cards, 12 cheque books, 6 passbooks, 12 signed cheques, Aadhaar, PAN cards, vehicle RCs, two cars, and company seals. Additionally, Rs5 lakh across 10 accounts has been frozen.
