Daijiworld Media Network - Shimla
Shimla, Jul 17: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested three more accused in connection with an alleged cryptocurrency fraud that cheated more than 2.48 lakh investors across several states, including Himachal Pradesh, causing losses estimated at nearly Rs 500 crore.
The ED's Shimla Sub-Zonal Office arrested Milan Garg, Sukhdev Thakur and Abhishek Sharma under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The arrests were made after the agency secured production warrants, as the accused were already in judicial custody in the related predicate offences.
According to the ED, the money laundering investigation stems from FIRs registered by the police in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab against alleged mastermind Subhash Sharma and several of his associates.
Investigators said the accused operated multiple fake cryptocurrency investment platforms, including Korvio, DGT, Hypenext and A-Global, promising investors assured and unusually high returns to lure them into investing.
The agency alleged that the fraudulent operation began in 2018, when Subhash Sharma and his associates launched a cryptocurrency-based multi-level marketing (MLM) scheme centred on Korvio Coin (KRO). The online platform was later shifted to foreign servers hosted on DigitalOcean and operated through domains such as korvio.io and voscrow.com.
According to the ED, investors were persuaded to purchase the cryptocurrency through promotional seminars, misleading marketing campaigns and manipulated token valuations. The agency alleged that the scheme functioned as a Ponzi operation, where funds collected from new investors were used to pay returns to earlier participants.
Investigators said the accused later attempted to erase evidence by deleting digital records and domain-related data. However, forensic examination of recovered digital evidence allegedly revealed that over 2.48 lakh users had invested through the platforms, with transactions exceeding USD 219 million.
The ED identified Milan Garg as one of the principal architects of the alleged scam, accusing him of developing and managing the online platforms, controlling cryptocurrency wallets, supervising investor migration between platforms and overseeing the movement and conversion of investor funds into cryptocurrencies.
The investigation further found that Sukhdev Thakur and Abhishek Sharma were among the earliest promoters of the scheme. The agency alleged that they played a key role in recruiting investors, collecting large amounts of cash and delivering the proceeds to members of the Juneja family and other co-conspirators on the instructions of the absconding mastermind, Subhash Sharma.
According to the ED, both accused received substantial commissions and acquired beneficial interests in properties allegedly purchased using the proceeds of crime, including stakes in Juneja Square, a property the agency claims was acquired with laundered funds.
The investigation also revealed that Sukhdev Thakur allegedly operated bank accounts and cryptocurrency wallets through which scam-related funds were routed, while Abhishek Sharma's bank accounts reflected significant financial transactions with individuals and entities allegedly involved in laundering money through cryptocurrency dealings and real estate ventures.
Following their production before the Special PMLA Court in Shimla, the court granted the ED 12 days' custody of the three accused to facilitate further investigation into the extent of the money laundering operation and the total proceeds generated through the alleged fraud.
Earlier in the investigation, the ED had also arrested Hem Raj and Masoom Juneja in connection with the same case.