Indian police in the state of Maharashtra have arrested a man on charges of cheating 1,441 investors in a fake cryptocurrency scam, according to a local media report

See related article: Tax authorities recover US$9M from India’s biggest crypto exchanges

Fast facts

  • The scam may be in excess of 2.5 billion rupees (US$31.2 million) and is spread across India, the report said.
  • So far, 24 investors who have collectively lost about US$55,085 have come forward, the report said. 
  • “Magic 3x” and “SMP” are the two crypto names that the accused was using to dupe investors, according to the report.
  • The man was arrested in Thane, a city in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. 
  • The Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of Thane police, which tackles economic and financial offenses, had arrested the man, according to the report.
  • India is also investigating at least 10 cryptocurrency exchanges in the country for allegedly laundering more than 10 billion rupees (US$125 million).

See related article: Indian authorities seize assets in alleged $162M crypto scam