Mule accounts mushroom in new pockets as investigators target hotspots

Mule accounts — once synonymous with the Jharkhand town of Jamtara and Nuh in Haryana — are now surfacing in quieter corners of India, like Katni and Shajapur in Madhya Pradesh, Kalaburagi in Karnataka and pockets of Assam.

Criminals often use mule accounts to launder illicit funds. As investigators crackdown on these networks in the known hotspots, the operators are moving to newer places, according to the insights shared at a meeting of bankers, government officials and investigative agencies held last month, people familiar with the matter said.