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3mo ago

CBI Charges 17 in Rs 1,000-Crore Cyber Fraud as Delhi Police Track Rs 944 Crore, Arrest Nine in Mule-Account Ring

Probes point to shell firms, mule accounts, USDT-linked hawala run by overseas controllers, with efforts now focused on tracing handlers, assets, recoveries across states.

Nine arrests after a Dwarka hotel raid led by IFSO. Fraud money was routed via mule bank accounts, hawala networks and USDT crypto, police said. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)
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Warned of legal consequences, the woman said she was asked to visit her bank and transfer money, police said. (File photo)
The police are trying to trace all the accused involved in the racket. (HT Photo)

Overview

  • CBI filed a chargesheet against 17 accused, including four foreign nationals, and 58 companies, alleging a coordinated network that routed over Rs 1,000 crore since 2020 through 111 shell entities and layered bank and merchant accounts.
  • The agency says schemes spanned fake loan and investment apps, MLM-style pitches, bogus job offers and gaming platforms, with one bank account alone receiving more than Rs 152 crore in a short period.
  • Forensic work and 27 searches across six states documented direct overseas direction of operations, including a UPI ID active abroad as late as August 2025 tied to Indian accounts.
  • Delhi Police’s IFSO arrested nine after a Dwarka hotel raid, uncovering 10,423 transactions worth about Rs 5.24 crore through an Axis Bank current account used for fraud, with funds moved via hawala and USDT; a key conduit linked account suppliers to kingpins.
  • Operation CyHawk 2.0 reported over 1,000 arrests or detentions and Rs 944 crore traced, while separate ‘digital arrest’ cases saw three held in Delhi over a Rs 1.16 crore fraud, an Indore victim losing about Rs 30 lakh, and fresh arrests in Chandigarh and Ludhiana probes.