Jharsuguda: In a major crackdown, police have busted a cyber fraud syndicate and arrested 12 persons on charges of duping local youths through mule bank accounts in Odisha's Jharsuguda district. The racket was busted as part of "Operation Netra" by Jharsuguda Police. 
The accused, of which two are minors, were nabbed on the charge of financial fraud. They were allegedly targeting students, daily labourers and other susceptible people in remote areas across Western Odisha and have routed money to the tune of over Rs 16 lakh through accounts linked to Jamtara. As many as 61 passbooks of different banks, 41 ATMs, 19 mobile phones with SIM cards of accused persons, one car and a scooter have been seized from their possession. 
Police, in an offcial release, confirmed the arrests and informed that the gang members were siphoning off money through mule bank accounts of gullible individuals. The criminals lured locals to open bank accounts by offering them money in return. The victims were then asked to provide banking credentials like  ATM cards, pass book and internet banking facility, etc to the syndicate members through the intermediaries. Some of the data was shared across larger cities and states. These mule accounts, once activated, were used to then route money through middlemen across the country, the release stated.

Racket spanned across Western Odisha

Addressing mediapersons, Jharsuguda SP Gundala Reddy Raghavendra informed that the gang's modus operandi involved offering Rs 15,000 for opening a mule account of which the account holder got Rs 5,000 and the middleman the remaining amount. The racket operated across Western Odisha including Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Rourkela, Sonepur and Sambalpur. Mostly naive youths and daily labourers were targeted,"  he said. 
The SP further added that the syndicate was operating in a well-organised systematic network. Of the arrested accused, six persons were from Jharsuguda, three from Sambalpur, one from Rourkela and one from Bihar. Only four cyber crime complaints linked to this gang have been reported till now. The fraud amount is around Rs 16.4 lakh as per preliminary findings. We have registered a case and will send a team to Jamtara (Jharkhand) and Bihar for further investigation. All others involved in this racket will be held soon," he added.
Also read: Odisha: Jamtara man among nine arrested for cyber fraud in Sambalpur