Rs.640 Cr Fraud: SC Rejects Bail Plea of CA Linked to Cyber Fraud
The Enforcement Directorate said the money laundering probe arises from two FIRs registered by the Economic Offences Wing of Delhi Police to investigate alleged cyber fraud of about ₹640 crore through betting, gambling, part-time job and phishing scams.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to grant anticipatory bail to a chartered accountant in a ₹640 crore cyber fraud-linked money laundering case and directed him to surrender within 10 days.
A Bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Augustine George Masih upheld the February 2 order of the Delhi High Court denying pre-arrest bail to Bhaskar Yadav. The High Court had also dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of Ashok Kumar Sharma.
In its 22-page judgment, the High Court observed that there existed an “intricate mesh of laundering of money” and accepted the Enforcement Directorate’s contention that custodial interrogation of the accused was necessary.
“The accused/applicants, being skilled professionals, are alleged to have structured the laundering of proceeds of crime through multiple layers. To unravel this complex arrangement, I find merit in the submission of learned counsel for the Directorate of Enforcement that custodial interrogation is necessary. This is not a case of mere dealing in cryptocurrency, which by itself is not an offence in India, with liability confined to taxation of crypto transactions. Rather, the present cases reveal an extensive and intricate web of financial movement involving funds allegedly extracted through fraud from unsuspecting investors, largely from the middle class,” the High Court had said.
The Enforcement Directorate said the money laundering probe arises from two FIRs registered by the Economic Offences Wing of Delhi Police to investigate alleged cyber fraud of about ₹640 crore through betting, gambling, part-time job and phishing scams.
According to the agency, the proceeds were layered through more than 5,000 mule bank accounts in India and subsequently transferred to PYYPL, a UAE-based payment platform. Part of the funds were allegedly withdrawn in cash in Dubai using debit and credit cards issued by Indian banks.
The agency has alleged that the fraud was carried out through a nexus of certain chartered accountants, company secretaries and crypto traders who laundered the proceeds of crime.
