The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized businessman Raj Kundra’s immovable and movable properties amounting to Rs 97.79 crore in connection with a bitcoin ponzi scam under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. This significant development includes the attachment of a flat in Juhu registered under the name of Kundra’s wife, actor Shilpa Shetty.
The attached properties also include a bungalow in Pune and equity shares owned by Raj Kundra, marking a significant step in the investigation initiated by the ED based on multiple FIRs that were filed by the Maharashtra Police and Delhi Police against Variable Tech Private Limited and key individuals including the late Amit Bhardwaj, Ajay Bhardwaj, Vivek Bhardwaj, Simpy Bhardwaj, Mahender Bhardwaj, and others.
The investigation has also revealed that the accused individuals gathered substantial funds through a bitcoin-based scheme, collecting bitcoins worth Rs 6,600 crore in 2017 alone. Investors of the scheme were promised a lucrative 10% monthly return in bitcoins, ostensibly generated through bitcoin mining activities. However, the accused failed to deliver on these promises, concealing ill-gotten bitcoins in obscure online wallets.
According to the ED’s findings, Raj Kundra received 285 bitcoins from Amit Bhardwaj, who was the mastermind behind the GainBitcoin ponzi scheme, for the establishment of a bitcoin mining farm in Ukraine. These bitcoins, sourced from illicit proceeds and obtained from investors who the accused had lied to, remain in Kundra’s possession, currently valued at over Rs 150 crore.
The arrest of the the three accused in the case: Simpy Bhardwaj (December 17, 2023), Nithin Gaur (December 29, 2023), and Nikhil Mahajan (January 16, 2023) was enabled due to the previous investigations and search operations in the case resulted. Reports state that all of the perpetrators are currently in judicial custody but the key accused Ajay Bhardwaj and Mahendra Bhardwaj remain absconding.
Earlier, the ED had already attached properties worth Rs 69 crore linked to the scam. Additionally, on June 11, 2019, the prosecution filed another complaint, followed by a supplementary complaint on February 14 this year, with a special PMLA court taking cognizance of the charges.
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