GUWAHATI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) recently froze bank deposits worth ₹2.18 crore after conducting multi-state searches against an Indian national accused of illegally converting cryptocurrency worth nearly ₹600 crore through Indian crypto exchanges.
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“The case pertains to conversion of cryptocurrency worth around Rs. 600 Crore at various Indian Crypto Exchanges and subsequent transfer of the funds to the beneficiaries,” the directorate on Monday, February 24, announced via their official account on X. “Several bank accounts pertaining to the Tomar family were freezed during the course of search operation.”
The searches, conducted earlier on February 20 under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), took place in Delhi, Jaipur, and Mumbai. The ED stated that the case involves large-scale crypto conversions and fund transfers to undisclosed beneficiaries.
The investigation was launched after a media report identified Chirag Tomar, an Indian national, as being involved in a crypto scam. Tomar was convicted by a U.S. court in November last year for defrauding hundreds of victims of over $20 million by running fake websites mimicking Coinbase, a popular cryptocurrency exchange. He was sentenced to prison in the U.S. and could not be reached for a response.
According to investigators, cybercriminals manipulated search engine results to make fraudulent websites appear as legitimate crypto platforms. Victims were tricked into entering login details, which were then used by fraudsters to transfer cryptocurrency into wallets under their control.
The stolen digital assets were further sold on LocalBitcoins.com and converted into Indian currency through domestic crypto exchanges.
The ED additionally found that proceeds from these transactions were transferred to bank accounts belonging to Tomar and his family members. So far, ₹15 crore has been traced to them. During the recent searches, multiple bank accounts were frozen, including ₹2.18 crore in deposits.
Officials have also identified a pattern of similar fraudulent crypto conversions and are continuing their probe into the scam.