TL; DR Breakdown
- Scammer incarcerated in $160 million crypto fraud
- The scammer was connected to the Morris scam
- India records a high rate of crypto frauds
Authorities in India have apprehended a scammer involved in a crypto fraud that saw more than $160 million scammed off investors. According to the Enforcement Directorate, Abdul Gafoor was a member of the scammers involved in the Morris Coin case. Investigations into the case started in January 2020, and events have continued to progress since then. As the intelligence arm of India’s finance ministry, ED combats high-profile cases across India.
The scammer had connections to the Morris scam
ED got assigned the case last year after many petitions and complaints were reported from investors against the operators of the scam investment. Investors also noted the sketchy attitude of the CEO, Nishad K. The scammer acts as a director for Stox Brokers, the company used for laundering funds before sending them to other corporations alike.
Authorities also mentioned that the scammer had was incarcerated line with the AML act and would be held in police custody pending trial. There are also reports that the police will petition the court to grant them custody of the scammer as he can prove a valuable help in their quest to apprehend other members of his gang.
India records a high rate of crypto frauds
Mainstream media first broadcasted the case involving the crypto entity after an investor filed against the scammer in September 2020. The complaint was said to be about the duration of the company’s plan, which spanned 300 days. Moving swiftly, authorities invited the CEO, Nishad, for a chat and released him on bail. During the time, the police failed to recognize the extent of the crime as they thought it was something flimsy.
Days after Nishad was granted bail, he fled the country and fell out of police radar. After finalizing investigations, the police apprehended seven people connected to the case. The police found out that the scammers swindled unsuspecting investors of funds running into millions. The seven people arrested acted as a point of collection agents for the company.
Investors would deposit the funds in their accounts, and they will, in turn, send them to Nishad. In the last few months, there has been a rising case of fraud in the crypto sector across India. Some weeks ago, four people were arrested for a Bitcoin scam case. Another case was that of a police officer and another person arrested for stealing Bitcoin that was locked in evidence.
