The Directorate of Enforcement has provisionally attached properties worth Rs 97.79 crore belonging to businessman Raj Kundra under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, the federal probe agency said on Thursday.
The seized properties include a residential flat situated in Juhu, which is presently in the name of his actor-wife Shilpa Shetty, and another bungalow located in Pune.
The seizures also include equity shares in the name of Kundra, the agency added in a communique.
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) initiated its probe on the basis of multiple FIRs filed by the Maharashtra Police and the Delhi Police against Variable Tech Pte Ltd, Late Amit Bhardwaj, Ajay Bhardwaj, Vivek Bhardwaj, Simpy Bhardwaj, Mahender Bhardwaj and a number of MLM agents.
According to officials, the ill-fated money is in the form of bitcoins worth Rs 6,600 crore which was extorted from the gullible public on pretext of giving them 10 per cent per month returns in the form of bitcoins.
The collected bitcoins were supposed to be used for bitcoin mining and investors were supposed to get huge returns in the form of crypto assets, they said.
It is further alleged that the promoters cheated the investors and have been concealing the ill-gotten bitcoins in obscure online wallets.
The ED claimed Kundra received 285 bitcoins from the master mind and promoter of Gain Bitcoin Ponzi Scam, Amit Bhardwaj for setting up bitcoin mining farm in Ukraine, adding that the said bitcoins were allegedly sourced out of proceeds of crime collected by Bhardwaj from gullible investors.
It said Kundra still has Rs 150 crore worth 285 bitcoins as the deal did not materialize.
Earlier, multiple searches were carried out in this case and three persons were arrested last year, while the prime accused Ajay Bhardwaj and Mahendra Bhardwaj are still absconding, the ED added.
The probe agency had also attached properties worth Rs 69 crore in this regard, while further investigation is underway, the agency said.