The Mumbai Police Crime Branch has dismantled a major cyber fraud syndicate and arrested three men accused of procuring and supplying mule bank accounts and SIM cards to route illicit funds generated through online scams. Investigators have traced transactions worth approximately Rs 24 crore across 10 bank accounts linked directly to the arrested individuals, while the wider criminal syndicate is suspected of handling funds totaling nearly Rs 350 crore.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Islamuddin Salimuddin Sheikh, 44, Yasir Nasiruddin Sheikh, 26, and Abdul Razzaq Abdul Rauf, 42. Officers from Crime Branch Unit 5 took the three suspects into custody on September 11. Following their arrest, the accused were produced before the Esplanade court, which remanded them to police custody until September 19. A case has been registered at Malad Police Station under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita governing cheating, criminal conspiracy, abetment, and common intention, along with Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Act for cheating by personation.
Intermediary Role in Mule Account and SIM Distribution
Police investigations revealed that the three men functioned as both buyers and sellers within the syndicate’s distribution hierarchy. The suspects allegedly acquired bank accounts and SIM cards from third parties by offering cash commissions, subsequently using these financial instruments themselves or transferring them to higher-level syndicate handlers.
In addition to procuring third-party profiles, the accused and their associates allegedly opened bank accounts in their own names as well as under other individuals’ identities. The suspects maintained physical custody of all associated account materials, including passbooks, automated teller machine cards, cheque books, and registered SIM cards. This arrangement allowed the network to exercise full administrative control over the accounts to accept, transfer, and withdraw illicit cyber fraud proceeds.
Significant Seizure of Banking Credentials and Digital Assets
During the raid, Crime Branch officers confiscated 88 bank passbooks, 143 cheque books, 100 ATM cards, 167 SIM cards, 24 mobile phones, and two laptops, alongside several other banking records. Forensic analysts and financial investigators are reviewing the recovered evidence to track specific account operations and establish links to additional pending cyber fraud inquiries.
Inquiries conducted so far indicate the broader network utilized as many as 2,898 SIM cards to carry out deceptive activities. A preliminary review of the national cybercrime reporting portal has already matched the identified mule accounts to at least 32 registered cybercrime complaints, showing that the operational infrastructure served multiple independent fraudulent schemes.
Broadening Probe into Wider Money Laundering Channels
The discovery of Rs 24 crore routed through merely 10 accounts has prompted authorities to expand the scope of their financial forensic analysis. Investigators are actively scrutinizing digital devices and transaction records to uncover additional accounts, verify remaining victims, and determine the complete scale of the suspected Rs 350 crore network.
The Crime Branch has intensified efforts to identify the individuals who supplied their credentials to the three suspects on a commission basis. Simultaneously, teams are working to trace the higher-tier syndicate operators who received the accounts and coordinated the broader laundering infrastructure.
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