A complaint over a loss of Rs 1.04 lakh in an investment app fraud in Nizamabad led Telangana police to uncover a much larger cybercrime network involving 46 mule bank accounts, links to crimes in 14 states and transactions worth Rs 152.18 crore.
Small Complaint Opens Larger Trail
The case began on January 11, 2025, when a 32-year-old man approached the IV Town police station in Nizamabad after losing his savings to a fraudulent investment app. Three days earlier, on January 8, he had invested Rs 1.04 lakh in an app that promised attractive returns. By the time he realised the app was fraudulent and approached police, the money had disappeared.
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Investigators first traced a phone number linked to the fraudulent investment app and then found a current account at a private bank’s Nizamabad branch that had been used as a mule account. Police later found another mule account, numbered 56820000100031001, which became central to the investigation. It was linked to proceeds of cybercrimes in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Telangana.
Mule Accounts Linked to Crimes Across States
Telangana Police later uncovered a countrywide cybercrime racket involving 46 mule accounts connected to crimes in 14 states and transactions worth Rs 152.18 crore. According to the report, the account numbered 56820000100031001 had earlier appeared in a National Cybercrime Reporting Portal complaint filed on June 14, 2024, involving nearly Rs 4 lakh from an investment fraud victim in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
In the Nizamabad case, the police traced the money to an account registered in the name of Mohammad Abdul Jawed from Bodhan in Nizamabad district. They recovered nearly the full amount lost by the complainant and arrested Jawed. During questioning, he reportedly named Gudumala Nithish as his handler. Both were named as accused and remanded to judicial custody.
The investigation later became part of Telangana Cyber Security Bureau’s Crackdown 1.0, launched in February 2026 to identify mule accounts, account holders and handlers. Inspector Sadula Satheesh said Nithish was linked to several cyber scammers who used account details to route money from different frauds, including investment fraud.
Victims in Multiple States Traced to Same Account
Police said Nithish’s phone contained data on 13 current accounts, with transactions worth Rs 31.07 crore linked to different cybercrimes. The Nizamabad police then asked the bank manager for details of all current accounts opened between 2024 and 2026. Of 106 accounts examined, 46 were found linked to crimes on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal.
The report also detailed other victims whose money allegedly reached the same Nizamabad account. A 29-year-old IT professional from Noida lost Rs 3.9 lakh in an investment fraud after being encouraged to invest through an app by a person claiming to have inside information in IPO stock trading. A 39-year-old homemaker from Buxar in Bihar transferred Rs 32,000 after being tricked by a caller claiming money had been accidentally credited to her account.
A 54-year-old man from Vadodara in Gujarat lost Rs 96,962 after a cybercriminal impersonated his relative over a phone call, while a 55-year-old government official in Hyderabad lost Rs 13 lakh after downloading what he believed was a genuine stock market app from the Google Play Store. Telangana Cyber Security Bureau director Shikha Goel said money from different crimes or criminal syndicates can reach a single mule account, which may be sold to different networks or operate on behalf of multiple actors.
Police said seven individuals connected to the fraudulent accounts have been apprehended and remanded to judicial custody, while efforts are underway to trace six remaining account holders who are absconding. Constable Narayana said the account holder of 56820000100031001 remains untraceable, as the address linked to the bank account and mobile number could not be verified.
