From luring people into opening bank accounts for a commission to posing as CBI officers and threatening victims with arrest, cybercriminals allegedly used multiple methods to cheat people across the country, Jaipur South police said after arresting 21 people and uncovering fraud worth over Rs 18.6 crore across 101 complaints registered in different states.The police registered 15 cases under a special campaign targeting cyber fraud and the use of mule accounts — bank accounts allegedly used to receive and transfer money obtained through fraud. An examination of cheque books and passbooks recovered from the accused revealed 101 complaints on the national cybercrime reporting system, involving alleged fraud of Rs 18.6 crore, police said. Of this, Rs 45.83 lakh was found in bank accounts.The operation led to the recovery of Rs 2.04 lakh in cash, 38 mobile phones, a Scorpio SUV, 25 cheque books, 20 passbooks, 30 ATM and debit cards, and fake PAN and Aadhaar cards belonging to 15 other people. Twelve Thai currency notes were also seized.DCP Jaipur South Rajarshi Raj said the police had stepped up action against cybercriminals, focusing on identifying those facilitating financial fraud and tracing the money trail. The accused allegedly used various methods to cheat people, including offering cars at unusually low prices on OLX, creating fake social media pages and impersonating government officials. In some cases, fraudsters allegedly posed as CBI officers and threatened victims with arrest to pressure them into transferring money, Raj said.Investigators also found that some accused allegedly persuaded people to open bank accounts in exchange for a commission and then sold the accounts to cybercriminals for Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 each. These accounts were allegedly used to route money obtained through online fraud, including transactions linked to victims in Odisha and Karnataka.In another method, fraudsters allegedly used fake Know Your Customer (KYC) documents and PAN cards to open suspicious bank accounts in different states. Police also identified cases involving online gaming transactions and a fake Facebook page offering 3D idols, through which victims were allegedly cheated after paying advances.The arrests are part of the state-wide “Cyber Shield” campaign launched by the Rajasthan Director General of Police to prevent cybercrime, expedite complaint disposal and improve public awareness.Story continues below this adBetween January 1 and October 17 this year, Jaipur South police resolved 25,808 of 31,976 pending cybercrime complaints. During the same period, 542 lost or stolen mobile phones, collectively valued at Rs 1.05 crore, were recovered and returned to complainants.Police also said Rs 8.84 crore linked to cyber fraud had been put on hold in bank accounts during the period. Under Operation Vajra Prahar 2.0, Rs 1.77 crore was recovered and refunded to complainants. A further Rs 93.84 lakh was refunded against 1,045 complaints received through the MRM portal.As part of its public awareness campaign, police reached more than 7,000 people across 20 schools and colleges. They also traced 944 wanted cybercrime suspects in different states through the coordination portal, issued notices and forwarded details to the respective police stations for further action.