Delhi police arrest three over crypto currency theft
Jul 26, 2024
New Delhi [India], July 26 : With the arrest of three individuals, the Intelligence Fusion & Strategic Operations (IFSO) Unit of the Special Cell, Delhi Police, solved a case of cryptocurrency theft and recovered approximately Rs 2.6 crore. This includes Rs 1.25 crore in cash, 2.32 BTC, and 9600 USDT, which amounts to about 90 percent of the total stolen amount. The remaining 10 percent was spent by the accused as commission for converting cryptocurrency from one form to another (Bitcoin to USDT) and then to Indian currency.
A complaint from Shilpa Jaiswal was received at IFSO, alleging that she was operating a cryptocurrency trust wallet on her mobile phone, which contained around six BTC. On July 4, 2024, while she was travelling abroad, she discovered that all the BTC in her crypto wallet had been stolen. Following a preliminary inquiry, a case was registered (FIR No. 309/24, under sections 303(2)/323/61(2)/3(5)/317(2) BNS & 66 IT Act at PS Special Cell), and an investigation was launched.
The team was tasked with establishing and analysing the money trail of complex crypto transactions from the complainant's trust wallet and tracing the stolen cryptocurrency through technical analysis. It was noted that the accused initiated multiple small transactions to avoid detection and quickly moved the BTC through a series of tumblers/mixers, making the trail challenging to follow. The team's relentless efforts led to the identification of six wallets where the stolen BTC were transferred.
Further analysis of these wallets' technical trails identified the individuals involved in the theft. After confirming their identities through technical analysis and local intelligence, the mastermind of the theft, Mokshi, was traced and arrested on July 19, 2024.
During interrogation, she revealed the details of two associates involved in the case. The team then pursued these individuals and, through technical surveillance and local intelligence, pinpointed their location. Subsequent raids led to the arrest of Sherry Sharma and Ashish Sharma.
All the accused confessed their involvement in the crime during sustained interrogation. It was revealed that Mokshi, a close friend of the complainant, knew about the cryptocurrency in the complainant's wallet. She, along with Sherry and Ashish, conspired to steal it. They were aware that the complainant would be travelling abroad on July 4, 2024.
As part of their plan, Mokshi convinced the complainant to let her accompany her to the airport. During the journey, under the pretext of using the navigation on the complainant's mobile, Mokshi transferred the entire crypto amount from the complainant's wallet to different crypto wallets.
The trio knew the complainant would be in flight mode for 7-8 hours, giving them enough time to further transfer the Bitcoin to different wallets. They transferred the stolen Bitcoin to multiple wallets and converted some cryptocurrency to cash at different locations.
