Nationwide Raid: CBI Targets 8.5 lakh of Fake Bank Accounts in Operation Chakra-V

In a major offensive against organised cybercrime networks, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has initiated coordinated searches at 42 locations across five Indian states, which include Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh. The action, carried out under Operation Chakra-V, is aimed at dismantling networks involved in cyber fraud and digital arrest scams, particularly the widespread use of mule bank accounts.

As part of this operation, the CBI has uncovered a staggering 8.5 lakh mule accounts opened across more than 700 branches of various banks throughout the country. These accounts were reportedly used to transfer proceeds from cyber frauds involving digital arrest scams, impersonation, fraudulent advertisements, investment frauds, and UPI-based financial scams.

In the initial investigations it was glaringly apparent that these accounts were frequently opened in violation of the proper Know Your Customer (KYC) norms and also in violation of Customer Due Diligence, or Initial Risk Assessments.

The inquiry found that several bank branch managers failed to perform Enhanced Due Diligence on suspicious transactions flagged by their systems. In some cases, acknowledgement or thank-you letters, which serve as an indirect method to verify the account holder’s address, were not dispatched.

Furthermore, violations of guidelines issued under the RBI Master Circular, as well as certain internal banking protocols, were also observed.

The cybercriminals behind these scams were found to have received assistance from bank officials, agents, aggregators, bank correspondents, middlemen, and e-Mitras. These people played instrumental roles in facilitating the opening and conducting of the mule accounts.

Based on the findings, the CBI registered a First Information Report (FIR) citing offences under the Indian Penal Code (IPC)/Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery, and use of forged documents as genuine, in addition to charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act for criminal misconduct by public servants.

The CBI recovered numerous incriminating documents and digital pieces of evidence during the searches, including mobile phones, bank account opening documents, transaction records, and KYC documents. The operation allowed a number of people, including middlemen in opening mule accounts, to be identified.

As of now, nine accused individuals have been arrested. The arrested include middlemen, agents, aggregators, account holders, and bank correspondents involved in facilitating and operating these fraudulent accounts. These individuals are being produced before the court.

This crackdown forms part of the Government of India’s continuing effort to combat cybercrime and digital arrest scams, with a particular focus on dismantling the infrastructure that enables such offenses. The CBI emphasized that the investigation is ongoing and that more actions are expected in the coming phases of Operation Chakra-V.