Axis Bank Staff Held in ₹500-Cr Mule Account Scam

Rajasthan Police have busted a massive cyber fraud racket in Alwar, exposing how mule accounts worth over ₹500 crore were sold to cybercriminals. Six people were arrested on Sunday, including four employees of Axis Bank, raising the total arrests in the case to 16.

Superintendent of Police (Alwar) Sudheer Choudhary said the racket thrived by selling fake current and corporate accounts through WhatsApp and Telegram groups. These accounts, created using forged documents, were then linked to fresh SIM cards and APK files, enabling fraudsters to directly control internet banking access.

Authorities revealed that the mule accounts were used to channel scam proceeds from online betting, gaming frauds, and crypto transactions. Investigators said the fraud had nationwide reach, with thousands of victims reporting losses.

Among those arrested were two alleged masterminds — Varun Patwa (40) from Udaipur, currently based in Gurugram, and Satish Kumar Jat (35) from Hisar, Haryana. The four Axis Bank employees in custody are Sahil Agarwal (33), Gulshan Punjabi (33), Asu Sharma (23), and Anchal Jat (24).

Police allege these employees exploited their positions to open multiple fake current accounts with forged KYC documents. The accounts were then passed to middlemen, who sold them to cyber gangs.

The racket’s scale is alarming. Over ₹500 crore was laundered through these mule accounts, with more than 4,000 complaints linked to them on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP). Fraud worth at least ₹100 crore has been directly traced back so far.

Police seized 33 mobile phones, 34 SIM cards, and ₹2.5 lakh in cash during raids. Investigations are continuing to track additional beneficiaries and financial links.

Cybercrime experts warn that mule accounts remain the backbone of digital fraud. By acting as money pipelines, they allow scammers to move stolen funds quickly and invisibly, especially dangerous when bank insiders are complicit.