ED files chargesheet against five in Oswal digital arrest case
The ED alleges Rs 7 crore extorted by fraudsters posing as CBI officers
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has filed a chargesheet against five accused, including Rumi Kalita, Arpit Rathore, Anand Chaudhary, Atanu Chaudhary and the Frozenman Warehousing & Logistics, in connection with a money laundering probe linked to the alleged “digital arrest” of industrialist and Vardhman Group Chairman SP Oswal.
The chargesheet was filed in a special PMLA court at Jalandhar on February 19 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. Earlier, the ED had provisionally attached assets worth Rs 1.76 crore in the case.
The ED initiated the investigation based on an FIR registered by the Ludhiana cyber crime police station under the BNSS. During the probe, it was found that proceeds of crime from eight other cybercrime cases were credited to the bank account of Frozenman Warehousing & Logistics on August 28, 2024.
According to the investigation, fraudsters impersonating CBI officers allegedly extorted Rs 7 crore from SP Oswal during a “digital arrest”.
The proceeds were first routed through bank accounts of Rigglo Ventures Private Limited and Frozenman Warehousing & Logistics. The ED alleged that the Frozenman account was controlled by Rumi Kalita of Guwahati and Arpit Rathore of Kanpur.
Investigators said an APK application, “AMMFORWARD,” was used to rapidly route funds. Rathore allegedly provided mule bank accounts to individuals in Cambodia, Vietnam and other countries, receiving commission in cryptocurrency in his Binance account.
The funds were then transferred to multiple mule accounts in small amounts ranging from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, withdrawn in cash and used to purchase virtual digital assets. These assets were allegedly transferred to foreign nationals after retaining commission.
The ED alleged that some proceeds were layered through shell entities and remitted abroad using trade-based money laundering methods. Mule accounts were reportedly opened using economically vulnerable individuals lured with promises of loans or jobs.
