Four and a half years after BitConnect collapsed, a victim has registered a complaint with police in India.
The victim, identified only as a lawyer in Pune, Maharashtra, claims to have lost “close to 220 bitcoin”.
Of that amount, 54 bitcoin is alleged to be an initial investment. The remaining 166 bitcoin is Ponzi returns that never existed.
Why this hasn’t been pointed out to the lawyer is unclear. In any event, on Tuesday Pune police have registered a First Information Report against BitConnect’s founder, Satish Kumbhani.
As reported by the Indian Express;
The transactions between the complainant and the suspects have taken place between 2016 and June 2021.
No arrests have been made in the case and a search for the suspects has been launched. Officials said that they will also probe whether the same set of suspects have cheated any more people in the same manner.
It was only after investigating the case that police in Pune realized Kumbhani has already been indicted in the US.
Senior Inspector DS Hake, from the Cyber Crime Police Station of Pune police said that the case was registered on Tuesday night and a probe has been launched into the details provided by the complainant.
If you’re wondering why Indian authorities don’t have their own federal case against BitConnect, a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme, I don’t know the answer to that either.
Kumbhani remains a fugitive at large. He is believed to be hiding out in either India or Dubai.