Updated Jun 05, 2018 | 15:03 IST | ET Now Digital
Lakhanpal had floated his own cryptocurrency, Money Trade Coin (MTC), added the ToI report. It may be noted that the cryptocurrency is a form of digital currency but not officially allowed in India.
Representative Image |Photo Credit: Indiatimes
Thane: The Thane police on Monday busted a racket where a gang allegedly duped numerous investors across the country in Ponzi schemes involving virtual currency or cryptocurrency, reported The Times of India. The Crime Branch scam amount is pegged between Rs 300 crore and Rs 500 crore, the report suggested. While one person has been detained in the scam, there are five others who are absconding, including the firm’s director Amit Lakhanpal.
It has also come to light that a prime technical support staff, Taha Kazi, has been detained by the authorities for his involvement in the cryptocurrency scam. Lakhanpal had floated his own cryptocurrency, Money Trade Coin (MTC), added the ToI report. It may be noted that the cryptocurrency is a form of digital currency but not officially allowed in India.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, in his Union Budget speech on February 1, had stated that the government will do everything to discontinue the use of virtual currencies in India. “The government does not recognise cryptocurrency as legal tender or coin and will take all measures to eliminate the use of these crypto-assets in financing illegitimate activities or as part of the payments system,” the finance minister had said.
The report on ToI suggested that one Flinstone Group is at the heart of the scam, adding that its employees pretended to be innovators and scammed people by requesting or luring them to invest money in their schemes. It should be noted that the company's office which is located at Orion Business Park on Ghodbunder road was raided by the police yesterday. Officials said in a statement that the company scammed people by promising them 10-20 times returns on their investments in just four to six months. The officer further said that some of the people were even promised Caribbean citizenship as well as a Swiss bank account. An assistant police officer is also suspected to be involved and it is being investigated. An officer told, “Our team is still examining the extent of the company’s operation in India and its international links.”
According to the officials the case was registered after Pravin Agarwal, a Delhi businessman filed a complaint along with some other people who were scammed. DCP, Abhishek Trimukhe said, " We have registered the offence at Chitalsar police station. The accused were trading a cryptocurrency, called Money Trade Coin, and duped several people.... it is too premature to reveal anything.”
Initial investigation revealed that the company first marketed its cryptocurrency MTC heavily and once the people started believing it they were scammed by Lakhanpal and the other culprits. Investors were also encouraged to spread the word and get more people to invest. “This way, several people were lured to invest and later, when they asked about the interest, the company gave evasive answers," said an officer.
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