Man held for supplying mule accounts to online scammers

The Delhi Police on Monday claimed to have arrested a man who allegedly supplied mule bank accounts across India to online fraudsters and lured a businessman to invest Rs 24 lakh on a trading app to earn higher profits.

The accused, identified as Satyam Kulshretha, alias Sam, was arrested from Gurugram. According to the police, the case was registered on the complaint of the businessman, who fell prey to an elaborate fraud last year.

In November 2024, he befriended a woman, who introduced herself as Neha Sharma, on a social media platform claiming to be from Gurugram and persuaded him to invest in a platform called Spreadex Global Ltd through WhatsApp and Telegram.

Convinced by fake promises of quick profits, the complainant initially transferred Rs 8 lakh. The fraudulent app soon displayed a profit of Rs 1 lakh within 10 days, which further lured him into making additional investments, eventually totaling Rs 24,49,304.

When he attempted to withdraw funds, the platform demanded another Rs 7.5 lakh as “processing fee.” Soon after, Neha cut off all communication, deactivating her WhatsApp and Telegram accounts, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara) Prashant Gautam said.

Following the complaint, investigation was initiated. He mentioned that based on technical surveillance and banking records, it was revealed that the funds were funneled through multiple mule bank accounts.

One account holder disclosed he had handed over his credentials to “Sam,” who operated through Telegram and WhatsApp.

Further surveillance led the police to Sector 11, Gurugram, where Kulshretha was detained on August 29 and later arrested. Two mobile phones containing incriminating chats were recovered.

Investigations revealed that Kulshretha, a BSc graduate from Agra University, once ran a tiffin service that went bankrupt.

He was introduced to mule account operations by a school friend and soon created fake online identities under the name “Sam”.

The accused posed as a representative of a Chinese gaming company, offering commissions to lure people into sharing their bank accounts.

The police say he had connections with more than 50 agents across India who supplied mule accounts for online scammers.