The Madhya Pradesh State Cyber Cell has revealed details of a large-scale crypto investment scam in which a 70-year-old chartered accountant from Gwalior allegedly lost more than ₹21.05 crore after being lured into investing through a fake cryptocurrency trading platform.
According to investigators, the stolen funds were layered through 20,507 mule bank accounts across 12 levels of financial transactions, making the money trail highly complex.
Victim Allegedly Lured Through WhatsApp
According to the FIR, the victim received a WhatsApp message in December 2025 from a woman claiming to be an investment adviser.
She allegedly persuaded him to invest in cryptocurrency through an online trading portal dealing in:
- USDT (Tether)
- Bitcoin (BTC)
The platform reportedly displayed increasing profits after each investment.
Initial Withdrawal Built Trust
Investigators said the victim initially invested around ₹1 lakh, followed by another investment of a similar amount.
On January 7, 2026, he successfully withdrew approximately ₹1.88 lakh, which investigators believe was deliberately allowed to build confidence before encouraging significantly larger investments.
Total Investment Crossed ₹21 Crore
Police allege that the victim later transferred funds from multiple bank accounts through RTGS and other banking channels.
The complaint states that the transfers included:
- ₹15 lakh from Union Bank
- ₹6.69 crore from HDFC Bank
- ₹10.6692 crore from one ICICI Bank account
- ₹3.55 crore from another ICICI Bank account
The total investment allegedly reached ₹21.05 crore.
Fraudsters Demanded More Money
When the victim attempted to withdraw his funds, the alleged fraudsters reportedly demanded ₹10.84 crore as income tax.
Later, they allegedly sought an additional 0.2 million USDT as a security margin after claiming the withdrawal had been classified as "high risk."
It was only after discussing the matter with friends that the victim realised he had allegedly fallen victim to a fraud and approached the State Cyber Cell.
Massive Money Laundering Trail
Financial investigators traced the movement of funds through multiple transaction layers.
According to the Cyber Cell:
- First layer: 76 accounts
- Second layer: 493 accounts
- Third layer: 12,720 accounts
- Fourth layer: 7,218 accounts
In total, investigators have identified 20,507 mule accounts, while continuing to analyse all 12 transaction layers involved in the alleged laundering network.
Investigation Continues Across Multiple States
Authorities believe the funds were rapidly routed through bank accounts across several states, including:
- Tamil Nadu
- Kerala
- Andhra Pradesh
- Maharashtra
- West Bengal
Investigators are coordinating with banks and financial intelligence agencies to identify account holders, trace the ultimate beneficiaries and recover additional funds.
So far, approximately ₹1.92 crore has reportedly been frozen.
Expert Advisory
Cybercrime experts noted that organised fraud networks often allow victims to withdraw small amounts initially to build confidence before demanding significantly larger investments and additional payments under various pretexts such as taxes, processing fees or security deposits.
They advise investors to use only authorised and regulated investment platforms and to remain cautious of promises of unusually high returns.
Investigation Ongoing
The investigation remains underway.
Authorities are examining digital evidence, banking records, transaction histories and interstate financial links to determine the complete extent of the alleged cryptocurrency investment fraud and identify all individuals connected to the network.
Shunyatax Global Insight
Shunyatax Global says that large crypto investment frauds increasingly rely on thousands of mule accounts, layered transactions and fake trading platforms to obscure the money trail. Investors should verify whether an investment platform is regulated, avoid transferring funds based solely on social media or WhatsApp recommendations, and treat requests for additional "tax", "unlock", or "security" payments as major fraud warning signs.