Documents, devices seized
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 2: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today conducted simultaneous raids at multiple locations in the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh and Haryana as part of its money laundering probe linked to a cryptocurrency fraud case in which investors lost more than Rs 7 crore worth of deposits.
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The ED sleuths under the supervision of Joint Director Jammu and Kashmir Navneet Aggarwal conducted raids at six premises in Leh (Ladakh), two in Jammu and one in Haryana in the case against AR Mir and others.
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In Jammu, the ED conducted raids at the the residence of Ajay Kumar Choudhary at Miran Sahib and Channi Singh at Talab Tillo Camp while in Leh the agency carried out raids in the premises of AR Mir at Choglamsar.
Some documents and devices besides papers relevant to the fraud have been seized by the ED sleuths during the raids.
As per the officials, it is alleged that 2,508 investors deposited more than Rs 7.34 crore in a fake cryptocurrency business in the name of “Emollient Coin Limited”. They, however, did not get any returns or currency back, and these funds were laundered by the business’ promoters to purchase land assets in Jammu.
The money laundering case stems from a March 2020 FIR registered in Leh and some other complaints filed in the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir (J-K) against AR Mir and Ajay Kumar Choudhary.
Police in Leh in their FIR stated that an inquiry was conducted by a committee formed by the local District Magistrate against Mir and his agents who were running the “fake” cryptocurrency business (Emollient Coin Limited) from an office located at the Anjuman Moin-Ul-complex, opposite SNM Hospital, in Leh.
The committee sealed this office during inquiry on charges of “cheating many innocent individuals by assuring them to double their investment”, according to the FIR.
The accused lured people of the UT of Ladakh and some other places to purchase “Emollient Coin” using cash or transferring money into bank accounts, according to Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials.
The depositors were also duped in the name of “Bitcoins” with the assurance of returns up to 40 per cent with a lock-in period of 10 months, the probe agency said.
Investors were dished out a commission of up to seven per cent of the investment made by the people on their reference in the business, thereby forming a multi-level marketing chain, the ED found.
A total of 2,508 people invested Rs 7,34,36,267 in the investment plan offered by Mir and the company (Emollient) floated by him that was incorporated in September 2017 and had its registered office in London. A man, Henry Maxwell, living in the UK capital, was its director.
The company had two promoters in India — Naresh Gullia and Channi Singh. The company was “deliberately” dissolved in March 2019, and Mir along with Choudhary launched a real estate business and acquired lands in Jammu from the funds generated by the fake cryptocurrency trade, according to the ED.
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