Criminals have always been attracted to cryptocurrency for obvious reasons. This new form of money is rather valuable and can be considered to be pseudonymous as well. In India, some criminals tried to scam users by posing as Bitcoin traders. Thankfully, they were apprehended by the local police. It is not the first nor the last time we see this type of crime involving Bitcoin either.
Six people have been arrested for their involvement in this scam. Contacting a local businessman through LocalBitcoins to allegedly sell Bitcoin is not illegal. Kidnapping said individual and robbing him blind, on the other hand, is something else entirely. Thankfully, the money will be returned to the victim, by the look of things. One of the people arrested is a woman, who is responsible for contacting the victim via telephone.
Bitcoin Heist in India Leads to six Arrests
It is evident cryptocurrencies are gaining more popularity in India. This also explains why legislators are trying to draft regulation for this new form of money. So far, these efforts have not resulted in any concrete guidelines. That situation is expected to change sooner rather than later, though, which is a good sign. It will not necessarily prevent criminal activity, but it may provide more legal protection overall.
It turns out the victim lost Rs 36 lakh due to this heist. The six arrested individuals are also held responsible for physically assaulting the man and one of his friends in the process. Their victims were warned not to go to the police or face worse punishment. Not heeding the warning, the DCP was contacted shortly afterward. By tracking phone records and phone numbers, they were able to successfully arrest these six individuals.
Two of the individuals are a law graduate and his girlfriend. It is unclear what they were planning to gain from all of this, though. The gang is spearheaded by Amandeep Singh, a bankrupt property dealer. All of this shows the Bitcoin industry is booming in India. With that growth comes negative attention by criminals as well, unfortunately. It is possible this gang made other victims as well, although that has not been officially confirmed at this time.
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