ED freezes Rs 46.96 cr of firms running Chinese betting apps

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 29

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today said it had frozen

Rs 46.96 crore of companies involved in a Chinese online betting racket. The agency said it conducted searches at 15 locations across Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai and Pune under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act-2002 (PMLA) in the case related to illegal betting.

An ED official said, “Searches were conducted at the registered offices of the companies, their directors and chartered accountants involved in running online betting apps from websites, which are hosted from outside India.”

Modus operandi

Initially, dummy Indian directors were used to incorporate the companies and, after some time, Chinese nationals travelled to India and became directors in these companies

During the course of search, the ED seized 17 hard disks, five laptops, phones, crucial incriminating documents and also froze Rs 46.96 crore kept in four HSBC Bank accounts.

The ED official said the agency had initiated investigation under the PMLA based on the FIRs lodged by Cyber Crime Station (CCS) of the Hyderabad Police under the IPC, Telangana under the Gambling Act-2017 and Prize Chits & amp; Money Circulation Scheme Act.

As the FIRs were registered against Dokypay Technology Private Limited and Linkyun Technolgy Private Limited, and others, the ED officials said three persons were arrested by the state police.

They included 24-year-old Yan Hao (S/o Yan Hongge), working as a manager at Beijing Tomorrow Power Company, and is a permanent resident of Room 1009, West Flourishing road, Haidain di street, Beijing, China, and two Indians Dhiraj Sarkar and Ankit Kapoor.

Investigations revealed that with the help of some Indian chartered accountants, some Chinese nationals floated multiple Indian companies. Initially, dummy Indian directors were used to incorporate the companies and, after some time, Chinese nationals travelled to India and took directorship in these companies, said the ED officials.