ED Conducts Search Operation Across 15 Premises Over Multi-Million Dollar Tech Support Scam

The Directorate of Enforcement, Delhi Zonal Office, is currently conducting a major search operation across 15 premises situated in Delhi, Noida, Gurugram, Haryana, and Mumbai.

This search is in connection with a sophisticated Tech Support Scam, as per NDTV. The enforcement action, which commenced on Oct. 7, stems from an investigation initiated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

The PMLA probe was launched following multiple First Information Reports registered by the Delhi Police against Karan Verma and other individuals linked to the racket. The investigation revealed that the fraudsters were operating numerous fake call centres across Delhi, specifically located in areas such as Rohini, Paschim Vihar, and Rajouri Garden.

The primary targets of this scheme were foreign nationals, who were systematically duped by the fraudsters. The accused impersonated customer support representatives of globally known companies, including major names like Charles Schwab Financial Services, Microsoft, and Apple. Further, they also impersonated Police and investigating officers to lend credibility and fear to their threats.

The victims were then extorted, often by being threatened with severe consequences, including arrest, forcing them to surrender their monetary assets to the fraudsters.

Following this, the investigation detailed a complex money laundering trail. The victims' monetary assets were immediately converted into easily transferable forms, such as cryptocurrencies and Gift cards. These digital assets were then transferred to the fraudsters in India and their accomplices overseas.

The probe into the financial trail has brought up evidence that the crypto wallets utilised by the fraudsters have transactions that run into millions of US dollars, showing the massive scale of the international financial fraud. The ED's searches across multiple premises aim to come against the network and find evidence of the scam's operations and illegal proceeds.

The Enforcement Directorate had filed a chargesheet against businessman Raj Kundra in a bitcoin 'scam' earlier last week. The ED stated that he is in possession of 285 Bitcoins, currently valued at Rs 150.47 crore. ED further added that he was not only an owner but also a beneficiary in the transactions and not just a 'mediator' as he claimed.