Overview
- The agency searched locations in Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab in a transnational online investment and part-time job scam tied to Dubai-based Pyypl.
- Ashok Kumar Sharma, a chartered accountant from Bijwasan, has been identified as the suspected ringleader, and the CBI is moving to secure his custodial interrogation after an ED arrest.
- Probes indicate nearly Rs 900 crore moved in the past year through about 15 shell firms, with proceeds converted to USDT on India-based exchanges and transferred to whitelisted wallets abroad.
- The network allegedly lured victims via social media and encrypted apps, showed fictitious profits to build trust, and layered funds through mule accounts, POS-coded wallet top-ups and offshore ATM withdrawals on Visa and MasterCard.
- The case, registered on inputs from the I4C, included earlier freezes of linked bank accounts and fresh seizures of digital records during the latest searches; Republic World reported that the CBI questioned Jai Ambani.