ED attaches over Rs 42 crore assets of Indian arrested in US in crypto fraud case

Assets worth Rs 42.8 crore of an Indian man, arrested in the US for allegedly stealing USD 20 million through a fake website that mimicked crypto exchange Coinbase, have been attached under the anti-money laundering law, the Enforcement Directorate said on Tuesday.

The federal probe agency identified the accused as Chirag Tomar.

The ED initiated investigation in the case on the basis of media reports, which said Tomar was arrested in the US for stealing more than USD 20 million through “use of fake or spoofed” sites mimicking the cryptocurrency exchange website Coinbase.

Tomar is currently lodged in jail in the US, the agency said in a statement.

Describing the modus operandi of the alleged fraud, the ED said a search engine optimisation technique was deployed and when the Coinbase website would be searched, the fake website would appear at the top.

The fake website appeared “exactly similar” to the trusted website except the contact details, the agency said.

When the users used to enter the login credentials, the spoofed website would show it as wrong and the users would contact the number given in the fake website connecting them to a designated call centre “managed” by Tomar, the ED said.

Once the fraudsters gained access to the victim's accounts, they would quickly “transfer” the victim’s cryptocurrency holdings to crypto wallets under their control.

“The stolen cryptocurrency would then be sold on various crypto platforms and converted into Indian rupee,” the ED said.

“Subsequently, the money was transferred in the bank accounts of Chirag Tomar and his family members and was used to buy immovable properties,” it said.

The agency said a provisional attachment order was issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on August 2 attaching 18 immovable assets located in Delhi apart from bank deposits in the name of Tomar, his family and associates. These properties are worth Rs 42.8 crore, it said.