Srinagar: The Counter-Intelligence wing of the police detained 22 suspects on Wednesday following raids at multiple locations across the valley, officials said.
They said the operation was part of an investigation into a “cyber terror case” involving the use of mule accounts.
The Counter Intelligence Kashmir (CIK) carried out simultaneous searches at 22 locations. These included 17 spots in Srinagar, three in Budgam and one each in Shopian and Kulgam districts.
The raids were conducted with an aim to dismantle the financial infrastructure of cyber frauds and terror networks, which exposed a syndicate operating across the valley, the officials said. The CIK undertook the operation after obtaining search warrants from the Special NIA Court.
According to the officials, the move is a significant blow to “organised cybercrime and its links to terror financing”. The CIK intensified its crackdown on a criminal network that “uses mule bank accounts to launder money from cyber frauds, illegal online gaming, betting rackets and other unlawful activities.” Following specific intelligence, the CIK police registered a case under various sections of the Information Technology Act, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The investigation revealed a “sophisticated and well-entrenched” financial crime syndicate that posed a serious threat to national economic security and digital safety. Preliminary investigation led to the identification of 22 suspects in the Kashmir division.
During the searches, police seized incriminating material, digital devices and financial records. The 22 individuals are being questioned to establish their roles in cyber frauds, illegal gaming, betting platforms and suspicious financial transactions.
The investigations have so far exposed a conspiracy where the accused worked with local and outside operatives to exploit the bank accounts of vulnerable and economically weak individuals. These were converted into ‘mule accounts’ to move large volumes of illicit money from scams, banned gaming platforms, and fake investment applications.
Officials suspect that these “illegally generated funds were channelled into terror financing and other activities prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of the nation.”
The syndicate operated by violating banking norms and abusing KYC procedures. They also registered non-existing business establishments on UDHAYAM portal to open accounts and used Virtual Account Numbers, identity theft and complex money-laundering techniques to hide the origin of the funds, the officials added. (WITH PTI INPUTS)
