In a major breakthrough against organised cybercrime, the Delhi Police have dismantled a sophisticated cyber fraud network, arresting seven individuals involved in draining Rs 3.93 crore from a single victim’s bank account.
The investigation, which spanned seven days of coordinated raids across Bikaner, Jodhpur, Phalodi, and other parts of Rajasthan, uncovered a complex web of layered mule bank accounts, illegal hawala channels, and cryptocurrency conversions.
149 Transactions in a Single Day
The fraudulent scheme came to light after the victim, identified as Prince Bansal, reported 149 unauthorised transactions sweeping out of his ICICI Bank account on October 5.
Upon receiving the complaint, Delhi Police launched an immediate investigation and traced the stolen funds through a rapid sequence of transfers. The cybercriminals used multiple layers of dummy or “mule” bank accounts to split and move the money swiftly across the country, aiming to obscure the digital paper trail. Some syndicate members were tasked with physically withdrawing cash from these mule accounts and handing it over to upper-tier operatives.
Hawala Networks, Foreign Apps, and Crypto Links
As investigators peeled back the layers of the operation, they uncovered links extending beyond domestic banking channels. The money trail exposed connections to a foreign money-exchange application named ‘U Home’ alongside an established hawala network.
One of the key accused, Brij Lal, a resident of Phalodi in Rajasthan, admitted during interrogation to converting part of the illicit proceeds into USDT (Tether) cryptocurrency through a hawala operator.
Key Finding: Brij Lal was already a wanted criminal in another ‘boss scam’ cyber fraud case in Delhi involving Rs 95 lakh.
Major Evidence Seized & Rs 1.78 Crore Frozen
Following intense multi-city operations in Rajasthan, Delhi Police seized a massive haul of financial and digital evidence used to orchestrate the crime:
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45 Cheque Books
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25 Bank Passbooks
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45 ATM / Debit Cards
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13 Mobile Phones
In a swift recovery attempt, authorities leveraged the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) to place an official lien or hold on Rs 1.78 crore of the defrauded amount, effectively freezing those funds before they could be laundered further.
Ongoing Investigation
Delhi Police confirmed that the probe remains ongoing as officers work to map out the entire ecosystem, identify additional account holders involved in the scheme, and investigate foreign network handles and hawala operators. Further arrests and fund recoveries are expected as digital evidence from the seized mobile devices undergoes forensic analysis.
