Shailesh Babulal Bhatt, an Indian resident, has been arrested under suspicion of kidnapping two individuals to recover money he lost in a scam.
The Indian Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Ahmedabad reported on August 17 that Bhatt suffered losses after investing in BitConnect Coin (BCC), a token associated with the now-collapsed BitConnect platform, which has been widely recognized as a global Ponzi scheme.
Bhatt, along with several accomplices, allegedly kidnapped two employees tied to BitConnect's founder, Satish Kumbhani, and extorted 2,091 Bitcoin, 11,000 Litecoin, and approximately $1.7 million (145 million Indian rupees) in exchange for their release.
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The investigation further revealed that Bhatt paid his accomplices around $34 million (2.89 billion Indian rupees) for their involvement in the crime. This money was reportedly used to purchase "immovable properties, gold, and other assets."
The investigation into Bhatt began after the ED received reports from the State Crime Investigation Department in Surat related to BitConnect. He was arrested on August 13 under the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act (PMLA), appeared in court in Ahmedabad, and remains in the custody of the ED.
So far, authorities have seized assets worth about $52 million (4.42 billion Indian rupees) as part of the ongoing probe.
BitConnect, once a well-known name in crypto, collapsed in 2018, leaving roughly 4,000 victims in 95 countries with losses totaling around $2.4 billion. In February 2022, the US Department of Justice charged BitConnect founder Kumbhani for allegedly running a Ponzi scheme through the platform's lending program.
The investigation remains active, with authorities continuing to uncover more details about the crimes involved in this case.
