CBI conducts nationwide op against fraudulent app based investment scheme

The CBI has searched 30 locations across 10 states and union territories after registering a case in a fraudulent investment scheme linked to the HPZ Token App, officials said Wednesday.

The agency has alleged the scheme involved misleading the public to invest in non-existent crypto-currency mining machine rentals. The nationwide operation ended Tuesday night.

Two private companies, Shigoo Technology Private Limited and Lillian Technocab Private Limited, along with their directors were booked in the case under Indian Penal Code Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy) 419, 420 (cheating) and Section 66 D of Information Technology Act, 2000, officials said.

The CBI seized digital devices, including laptops, mobile phones, ATM and debit cards besides a trove of email accounts, during the searches spread across Delhi-NCR, Jodhpur in Rajasthan, Mumbai in Maharashtra, Bengaluru in Karnataka as well as locations in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh.

"The HPZ is an app-based token which promises users large gains by investing in mining machines for Bitcoin and other crypto currencies. The fraudsters allegedly used a modus operandi that enticed victims to invest in the HPZ token app on the pretext of astronomical returns on their investments in Bitcoin mining," the CBI alleged.

The probe in the case so far has unearthed 150 bank accounts related to the accused used to collect funds from investors.

"These funds were initially used for payouts to build trust, before being illicitly transferred out of India, often converted into cryptocurrency or moved through Hawala transactions," the CBI said in a statement on Wednesday.