CHENNAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested two absconding accused in the HashPe cryptocurrency fraud case, in which people were duped of more than Rs 146 crore on the promise of high returns if they invested in a cryptocurrency named TCX.The accused, identified as Syed Usman alias Babu and Dhamodharan Balachandran of Coimbatore, were produced before the special court for PMLA cases in Chennai on Tuesday and were remanded in judicial custody.Earlier, ED arrested Hitesh Kumar and Imran Basha from Coimbatore on Sept 1 after carrying out searches in 11 places in Chennai, Coimbatore and Kolkata in connection with the fraud.ED initiated investigations under PMLA based on an FIR registered by the CB-CID, Puducherry, in which the victims had alleged that they had been cheated in the guise of an investment scheme floated by the accused. ED said Syed Usman, Dhamodharan and his associates lured people to invest in their cryptocurrency called TCX through their platform HashPe, promising high returns. To convince investors, the accused conducted a grand launch event of the scheme featuring Bollywood celebrities and promised referral commissions.The fraudsters received Rs 146 crore from people — Rs 16 crore in cash, Rs 10.52 crore by bank transfers and Rs 120 crore in the form of TCX coins.“Syed Usman handled cash and bank transfers, while Dhamodharan managed the HashPe software and wallet functions,” said ED.The agency said the proceeds of crime had been diverted to the personal accounts of the accused, family members and the same was invested in cryptocurrency as well as immovable properties.
