Hyderabad police have uncovered a large cybercrime network that stretched across several states and depended heavily on bank-related support. More than 52 accused were arrested during search operations carried out in nine states under Operation Octopus-2.0, with several bankers among those held.
The police said the arrests were aimed at people who helped cybercriminals move stolen money and keep the fraud network active. The case involved investment frauds and digital arrests, where victims were threatened and pressured into sending large sums of money.
Bank staff among the key suspects
A major part of the operation focused on bankers who allegedly enabled the crimes by opening accounts for fraudsters. Police said 32 of the arrested were bank officials, while 15 were mule customers and five were mediators.
Investigators described the bankers as playing a central role in helping the network function. According to police, cybercrime becomes difficult to execute without bank accounts, which is why the financial links drew close attention during the crackdown.
How the money trail was traced
Police formed nearly 16 special teams to examine the scam and track the movement of the extorted money. The investigation found that criminals used 350 bank accounts to divert funds taken from victims.
Those accounts were linked to more than 850 cyber cases reported across the country. Police also identified fraud transactions worth Rs 150 crore that passed through the same network.
Wide reach across states
The coordinated searches covered nine states, showing how widely the network had spread. The arrests, police said, were not limited to direct fraud operators but also included people who helped maintain the account infrastructure behind the scam.
The findings suggest that cyber fraud groups relied on a layered support system, combining social engineering, bank account access, and intermediaries to move the money quickly. Police continue to treat such account networks as a major enabler of large-scale online fraud.
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