Cyberabad police bust interstate trading fraud gang; 6 arrested for supplying mule accounts, SIMs

Hyderabad: The Cyber Crime Police Station, Cyberabad, have arrested six individuals involved in an organised cyber fraud network.

The accused were supplying bank accounts, cheque books and SIM cards to online trading scam operators functioning across multiple states.

The case is registered under Sections 318(4), 319(2), 336(3), 338, 340(2) read with Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act, 2000.

Modus Operandi

The accused procured and transferred bank accounts and SIM cards to cyber criminals who operated fake trading platforms.

Victims were lured by fabricated profit statements and fake dashboards and induced to deposit money into mule accounts controlled by the gang. Large-scale financial trafficking was carried out through these accounts for commission.

The accused have been identified as Venigalla Srinivas Rao (52), Chitta Ganesh (45), Gandluru Naveen Kumar Reddy (33), Sathuri Rajesh (41), Maddiralla Sudheer (50) and Mohammad Ashraf (39). They were residents of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Network involved in 400 cyber fraud cases

Venigalla Srinivas Rao and Chitta Ganesh sourced bank accounts and SIM cards. Gandluru Naveen Kumar Reddy identified account holders and facilitated onboarding and documentation.

Forensic analysis of seized mobile phones revealed 60 cheque leaf images and digital material linking the network to approximately 400 cyber fraud cases nationwide and three registered crimes within Cyberabad limits.

The collected accounts were passed to Sathuri Rajesh on commission of Rs 1 lakh per Rs 1 crore transaction volume and Rs 10,000 per account. Rajesh further supplied the accounts to Maddiralla Sudheer and Mohammad Ashraf for a 2 per cent commission.

Maddiralla Sudheer shared select credentials with one other person at 5 per cent commission, while Mohammad Ashraf transmitted multiple accounts via Telegram user ID ‘Sybo_pay’ to overseas fraud operators.

The total amount of property lost is said to be Rs 1,09,50,000 (Rs 1.09 crore).

A case has been registered and further investigation is on.

Supplying mule accounts and SIMs for fraud is illegal, warns police

The public is warned against parting with bank accounts, ATM cards, SIM cards or OTP credentials for commission or convenience. Renting or lending financial identities constitutes a criminal offence and attracts severe penal consequences underthe law.