What happened
Onmanorama reported on 11 November 2026 that police in Vadakara, Kozhikode, Kerala, arrested six people as part of Operation Cy-Hunt, a statewide drive against cyber financial fraud and illegal banking transactions. The named accused are Arun (20), Vivek Santhosh (25), Devjith Sunil (23), Anurag (31), Sajeesh (43) and Shoukath Ali (28). Police allege the six rented out their bank accounts to cyber fraudsters for commissions, and that some also withdrew money obtained through cyber fraud using cheques and ATMs. According to police, the accounts handled transactions of about Rs 38.65 lakh in total, including Rs 13.46 lakh through Devjith's account and Rs 9.10 lakh through Anurag's. Vadakara police have registered cases against 21 people in connection with the racket, and the investigation into remaining suspects continues.
How the scam works
Cyber-fraud groups often need other people's bank accounts, sometimes called mule accounts, to move stolen money. They recruit account holders with a promise of easy commission for renting or selling an account, or they open accounts in other people's names after collecting identity documents. Funds that then pass through the account can be the proceeds of theft, and the account holder can face investigation even if they did not take money from a victim directly. Do not rent, sell or hand over a bank account, OTP, ATM card or login, and do not agree to receive and forward money for someone you met online.
Onmanorama reported the Vadakara arrests as part of Operation Cy-Hunt, a statewide police drive against cyber financial fraud and illegal banking transactions. The six people named are accused, and the allegations are unproven. Similar mule-account cases reported the same day include an Indore 'Operation Matrix' case and an Assam CID arrest over accounts allegedly opened in other people's names.
Source
Onmanorama, 11 November 2026: https://www.onmanorama.com/news/kerala/2026/11/11/six-arrested-in-kozhikode-for-facilitating-cyber-fraud-through-mule-accounts.html
