MYSURU: Over the last two months, at least 10 youth have been arrested from the city for their alleged involvement in cyber financial crimes. These arrests were made by police teams from other states, including Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Maharashtra, as well as from other districts in Karnataka.
Police sources said cyber crime syndicates lure youngsters to their network by offering money or dangling account handling jobs. What begins as a request to use their bank accounts or mobile numbers for transactions assuring them a commission quickly spirals into large-scale financial fraud, illegal money routing, and mule account operations.
The arrested include undergraduate students, school dropouts and youths taking up odd jobs.
According to police, these individuals were held responsible for providing and operating bank accounts used to receive and circulate fraudulent funds, which were later withdrawn in cash from ATMs. These mule accounts are used to obscure money trails, using rapid transfers.
Youths arrested for aiding phishing, scam networks
The fraudsters targeted financially vulnerable youths. Apart from their own, the arrested youths also provided accounts of their friends and acquaintance, said police sources.
Among a few recent incidents Dakshina Kannada cybercrime police arrested three youths from Mysuru for enabling fraudulent money transfers linked to a phishing racket.
In another instance, two students were detained for providing bank accounts used in an investment scam in a case registered at Pimpri Chinchwad in Pune.
In a case registered by Chennai North Cyber Crime Police, three youths were taken into custody for facilitating UPI transactions connected to an online trading fraud syndicate.
Two days ago, two Mysuru-based youngsters were picked up by West Bengal police for their role in a loan app scam network’s money routing operations at Rajarhat in West Bengal.
Senior officers attached to the cyber cell said the youths involved were unaware of the seriousness of their actions. “By allowing their accounts to be used, they become legally liable as money mules who move or launder illegal funds and for being the direct collaborators in criminal conspiracy they are arrested,” the officer said.