MP Police Link ₹3,000 Crore Fraud Trail to Haryana’s Nuh, Probe Exposes 1000 Mule Accounts And SIM Network

BHOPAL: A large-scale investigation by Madhya Pradesh police has uncovered a sprawling financial network connecting the state to Haryana’s Nuh district, exposing how thousands of bank accounts, forged SIM cards, and mule transactions were used to facilitate one of the region’s largest inter-state cybercrime operations.

A Hidden Network Behind Routine Transactions

Initially dismissed as isolated low-level fraud cases, detectives soon realized these activities formed a highly organized financial ecosystem. Over the past year, authorities traced illegal transfers through more than 1,000 bank accounts across the Vindhya and Mahakoshal regions, used as conduits for laundering fraud proceeds.

Senior officials said the transactions included misappropriated religious donations and transfers from unidentified sources, with some potentially linked to terror financing. Officials estimate that over ₹3,000 crore circulated through this network, with shell companies based in Hyderabad and parts of Maharashtra helping obscure the money trail.

Nuh: A Surprising Cybercrime Hub

Investigators discovered that the operation’s central coordination was not in Madhya Pradesh, but in Nuh, Haryana, and surrounding districts in Rajasthan. Once peripheral in India’s cybercrime map, Nuh has emerged as a significant hub for white-collar cyber operations, with residential flats in Gurugram allegedly serving as illegal call centers.

“The masterminds are operating from Nuh, using access to SIM cards procured across states to contact victims nationwide,” said Pranay Nagwanshi, superintendent of Madhya Pradesh’s cybercrime cell. Operators impersonated officials to coax victims into transferring money, masking their true locations with domestic SIM numbers.

The SIM Card Pipeline and Patna Link

A critical component of the network was the steady supply of SIM cards. Investigators say operatives in Madhya Pradesh and neighboring states obtained SIM cards through forged identities, which were then funneled to the main controllers via middlemen in Patna. This allowed callers in Gurugram to appear local to victims across India, significantly boosting the scheme’s effectiveness.

Over 25 individuals have been arrested across Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Bihar and are now facing formal charges. Authorities emphasize that the network’s organization—covering recruitment, cross-state money flows, and centralized control—resembles the structure of a sophisticated criminal syndicate rather than ordinary cyber fraud.

Expanding Investigation

The probe continues to widen, evolving from an inquiry into fraudulent transfers to a multi-state investigation encompassing call-center operations, shell companies, and clandestine money flows. Detectives are also examining whether any funds sent abroad intersect with known terror-financing channels, while continuing to scrutinize over 1,000 bank accounts exploited by unsuspecting villagers.

Authorities are coordinating across states to dismantle the network and bring all key perpetrators to justice, highlighting the growing complexity and scale of organized cybercrime in India.