NEW DELHI: Delhi Police has arrested a 49-year-old restaurateur for allegedly providing mule accounts to scammers involved in digital-arrest cases. Police said the accused, Mohammad Javed, is the son of the founder of well-known restaurant chain Khan Chacha, which was later acquired by another businessman.Javed’s brother, too, has been bound down in connection with the case. Police said the case involves fraudulent transactions totalling around Rs 3.3 crore, a part of which was routed through the bank account linked to Javed, a resident of Sainik Farm. During scrutiny of complaints received on the NCRP Portal, several suspicious transactions were traced to one bank account. Initial inquiries revealed that the account had been used to receive and route money cheated out of cyber-fraud victims, police said. The account was found to be registered in the name of a company, ‘Saleem Javed Rule The Rolls Since 1960,’ operating from Khan Market, New Delhi, and associated with the franchise business of the well-known brand ‘Khan Chacha,'” Delhi Police said in a statement.However, Navneet Kalra, the present owner of Khan Chacha, clarified they were currently not associated with the accused. He said the brand was acquired long ago and the individuals used to work with them around 10 years ago.Police said Javed and his brother Mohd. Saleem (49) admitted during interrogation they had originally opened the account for their restaurant and catering business but, due to financial difficulties, allowed it to be used by others in return for a commission.Police said there were 21 complaints, involving a total of at least Rs 3.3 crore, linked to the bank account. Around Rs 54 lakh had been credited into the account, then layered and transferred to other accounts, police said.The accused allegedly told police they were offered 2-3% commission. The accused had allegedly deleted certain chats to conceal involvement, but crucial digital evidence was recovered during the investigation. Police are on the lookout for three other associates.
