On Friday, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) organized raids on seven locations in the National Capital Region, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru, to arrest five people in an organized cyber fraud involving the HPZ cryptocurrency token. A statement made by the agency on Saturday has said that the fraud constitutes a large international cybercrime scheme that has swindled investors of hundreds of crores of rupees.
In 2024, the HPZ Token App was already examined by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which brought a charge sheet against 299 accused persons and entities including 76 Chinese-controlled entities under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The CBI reported that its most recent raids are as part of Operation Chakra-V, an ongoing investigation of cybercrimes, such as illicit crypto exchanges, online gambling betting firms, financial frauds, and other online frauds, which have been in action in the last six or seven months.
Criminal conspiracy, impersonation, fraud and those offences under Information Technology Act have been referred to as the charges of the case. The CBI saw it as a criminal conspiracy by foreign masterminds in liaison with Indian nationals. Between 2021 and 2023, the fraudsters committed systematic cyber frauds in India in the name of loans, employment, investment opportunities, and cryptocurrency projects.
It was found out that several shell companies were established in India upon the request of foreign agents. These organizations were deployed to open mule bank accounts, which were then filled with money obtained by defrauding victims in order to launder the money into cryptocurrencies and send them to foreign countries using intricate financial layering and crypto conversion protocols to conceal the traces of illicit money gains.
Recent raids saw five people who were directly involved in the execution of the fraud being arrested although their names are not revealed.
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