A private bank employee was arrested on Thursday for allegedly misusing the identity documents of a Sovabazar resident to open multiple bank accounts without his consent, which were later used in cybercrimes.
The accused, Kushal Roy, was arrested by officers of Narayanpur police station under Bidhannagar City Police.
The complainant, Jayanta Pal, a resident of 40, Bonamali Sarkar Street, Sovabazar,
had approached the Narayanpur branch of the bank about two years ago to open an
account.
“The bank employee who assisted him collected his documents, promising to open the account. However, when Pal asked for his account details and an ATM card a few days later, he was told the account could not be created due to technical issues,” said an officer of Narayanpur police station.
In July, Pal learned that three bank accounts — apparently opened in the same branch where his application had been rejected — were linked to a cybercrime and subsequently blocked, the police said.
“It was found that three accounts, including a current account with multiple transactions, had been opened using his genuine identity documents, without his knowledge,” said the officer.
During the investigation, the police tracked ATM withdrawals made from the fraudulent accounts and traced them to Roy.
“These accounts were used as mule accounts — bank accounts used for transferring money obtained through cyber fraud,” said a senior officer of Bidhannagar City Police.
“In many cases, such accounts are opened without the account holder’s knowledge or by duping unsuspecting individuals into believing the accounts are for legitimate use,” the officer explained.
The case highlights a growing concern in cybercrime where victims’ identity documents are exploited to create accounts used to route stolen funds. Thousands of people fall prey to such scams every day, with their money siphoned off through e-wallets and bank accounts — often without their knowledge.