Rs 1,000-crore illicit funds routed via mule accounts; CBI books Punjab & Sind Bank's branch head, 18 others

The agency has taken action on the basis of its preliminary enquiry, which exposed 13 mule accounts opened in the names of non-existent companies using forged documents, officials said.

New Delhi: The CBI has registered an FIR against a branch head of Punjab & Sind Bank and 18 others for allegedly opening mule accounts which were used to conceal and layer funds over Rs 1,000 crore generated from cybercrime and other illicit activities, officials said Friday.

The agency has taken action on the basis of its preliminary enquiry, which exposed 13 mule accounts opened in the names of non-existent companies using forged documents, they said.

The agency found that several individuals arranged forged and fabricated KYC documents, false rent agreements and other fabricated supporting documents used for opening the accounts in the bank's Government Girls Senior Secondary School Branch in Rajasthan's Sriganganagar. Vikas Wadhwa was the head of that branch.

"The said accounts were allegedly opened with the connivance and criminal conspiracy of unknown bank officials, violating KYC norms, due diligence requirements and standard operating procedures," the agency has alleged in the FIR.

A mule account — set up using falsified identification documents — is primarily used to move or launder illicit money, with or without the knowledge of the individuals whose details have been used to open the account.

"Fake site visit reports and business verification were created by the bank officials to facilitate opening of these current accounts in the names of fictitious firms," the agency FIR alleged.

The central probe agency said all the 13 firms in whose names the said current accounts were opened were non-existent and created solely to open and operate these current accounts using forged and fabricated documents.

It is further revealed that significant transactions worth thousands of crores of rupees were routed through these mule accounts through various banking channels and digital platforms, the FIR alleged.

"These accounts were subsequently used to route, layer and transfer proceeds of cyber-crime and other illicit activities. The transaction amount involved...is about Rs. 1084.00 crore," the agency alleged.

The CBI said accused persons, including Wadhwa, made illicit gain for themselves and corresponding "wrongful reputational loss" to the Punjab & Sind Bank.

"Besides this, if the allegations of money laundering are made out, the accused persons have also exposed the bank to the risk of penalties, thereby placing the bank in a position where it is likely to suffer financial loss on account of such penalties as well," the CBI FIR alleged.