The Cyber Crime Police in Mangaluru apprehended two individuals for allegedly obtaining bank accounts from the public under the guise of utilizing them for a trading venture, subsequently employing these accounts for cyber fraud associated with overseas operators. The police confiscated four mobile phones, 18 debit cards, 17 bank passbooks, six cheque books, 1,479.31 units of USDT cryptocurrency, and a Maruti car during the operation.
The arrested suspects, identified as Mohammed Aneesh (30) and Saleeth Ahmed M. (32), were taken into custody in connection with a case registered at the Mangaluru City Cyber Crime Police Station under relevant sections of the Information Technology Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. The arrests followed a complaint lodged by Mohammed Sinan, who alleged that his associates, Mohammed Aneesh and Saleeth Ahmed, misused his bank account details for cyber fraud after promising to use them for a trading business.
The investigation disclosed that the accused had amassed numerous bank accounts from the public and employed them in cyber fraud operations. They purportedly purchased USDT cryptocurrency at discounted rates in India and sold it at inflated prices to cyber fraudsters in China through WhatsApp and Telegram contacts.
Police mentioned that the Chinese cyber fraudsters transferred funds acquired from cyber crimes against Indian citizens into the accounts provided by the accused. The suspects knowingly utilized these accounts for cyber fraud, frequently acquiring new accounts when previous ones were frozen due to complaints.
Upon scrutinizing the seized mobile phones and conducting interrogations, the police discovered that the accused had obtained over 70 bank accounts from individuals in Mangaluru and nearby regions. A significant number of these accounts have been reported on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, with numerous complaints registered from various parts of the country.
