Delhi Court Orders CBI to Take Over Probe in Rs.2,000 Crore Cryptocurrency Fraud Case

Strategic Insights -

The Delhi court examining the Rs.2,000 crore cryptocurrency fraud case has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to consider taking over the probe from Delhi Police, suspecting involvement of a syndicate. The case involves the hacking of leading cryptocurrency platform WazirX, resulting in the theft of nearly Rs.2,000 crore. The court has also sought to investigate the involvement of a state or syndicate behind the fraud, which may have affected the industry and used the siphoned money for further illegal activities.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Delhi court has ordered the CBI to take over the probe in the Rs.2,000 crore cryptocurrency fraud case from Delhi Police.
  • The case involves the hacking of WazirX, a leading cryptocurrency platform, resulting in the theft of nearly Rs.2,000 crore.
  • The court has suspected involvement of a syndicate or state support behind the fraud.
  • The case was registered by Delhi Police under the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the name of Souvik Mondal, a resident of West Bengal, cropped up during the probe.
  • Mondal's account was registered on WazirX on July 11, and he had received a crypto deposit of over Rs.91 lakh in his account.
  • Police later found that Mondal's account was registered in the name of SK Masud Alam, the prime accused in the case.
  • Alam had been in judicial custody for more than eight months, and his bail plea has been moved on repeated occasions due to the lack of progress in the investigation.
  • The court has directed the Investigating Officer (IO) to send notices to various organizations, which were kept confidential due to government and investigating agencies involved.

Statistics:

  • The stolen amount of Rs.2,000 crore
  • 234 million USD in total transaction before the hacking was detected
  • Rs.91 lakh crypto deposit received by Mondal in his WazirX account
  • Over eight months of judicial custody for SK Masud Alam
  • Number of bail applications moved by Alam: 3

Sources:

  • Hindustan Times, "Delhi court asks CBI to consider taking over probe in Rs 2,000 crore cryptocurrency case"