The Enforcement Directorate conducted coordinated search operations at eight locations across Himachal Pradesh and Punjab on Saturday in connection with a fake cryptocurrency-based Ponzi and Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) scam that allegedly defrauded several investors of around Rs 2,300 crore.
The operation was carried out under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), following multiple FIRs registered in both states against the alleged mastermind, Subhash Sharma, who fled India in 2023, and his associates. The accused face charges under the Indian Penal Code, the Chit Funds Act, and the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, among other statutes.
The probe agency found that the group operated fraudulent crypto-MLM schemes through self-created, unregulated platforms, including Korvio, Voscrow, DGT, Hypenext and A-Global. Investors were lured with promises of extraordinary returns, while the schemes functioned as classic Ponzi operations using funds from new investors to pay earlier participants.
Searches revealed deliberate manipulation of fictitious token prices, repeated shutdowns and rebranding of platforms to evade detection, and extensive laundering of proceeds of crime through cash collections routed via builders, shell entities, and personal accounts of the accused and their relatives. Several commission agents reportedly earned crores by onboarding new investors, aided by foreign travel incentives and promotional events.
Despite freezing orders issued in November 2023, investigators found that 15 plots in Zirakpur in Punjab's Mohali district were illegally sold by one of the accused in contravention of the law. The searches led to the freezing of three lockers, bank deposits worth around Rs 1.2 crore, and seizure of incriminating documents, investor databases and digital devices pointing to large-scale laundering and unnamed property acquisitions. Further investigation is underway.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
