NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached apartments in Burj Khalifa among 18 immovable properties located in Dubai (United Arab Emirates) and two immovable properties in New Delhi, having a market value of nearly Rs 1700 Crore, the agency said on March 26.
Other attached foreign assets are located at prime locations in Dubai and include High-value luxury villas, apartments in Dubai Hills Estate (including Hills View, Fairway residency and Sidra), multiple high-end apartments in Business Bay and SLS Hotel and residences.
“The properties considered for attachment belong to Sourabh Chandrakar, one of the main promoters of the Mahadev Online Book betting application and held in the name of entities controlled by him, his associates, including Vikas Chhaparia, Rohit Gulati, Atul Arora, Nitin Tibrewal, and Surendra Bagri,” said the ED in a statement.
The investigation conducted by ED has revealed that these properties were acquired from the Proceeds of Crime generated by the commission of scheduled offences related to illegal online betting operations in the name of the Mahadev Online Book platform and several others.
ED initiated an investigation on the basis of multiple FIRs registered by Police authorities in Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal under various Sections of IPC, 1860 and Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, against persons related to illegal online betting platforms such as Mahadev Online Book and Skyexchange, as well as government officials.
Investigation conducted by ED has revealed that the Mahadev Online Book operated as a large-scale international betting syndicate, which facilitated illegal betting through multiple online platforms and domain names such as Tiger Exchange, Gold365 and Laser247.
ED said the operation was structured through a franchise-based network of “Panels” or “Branches” operated by associates across India, while the main promoters, Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, operated and controlled the betting syndicate from Dubai.
“Investigation further revealed that the promoters retained approximately 70-75% of the profits generated by the betting panels, while the remaining portion was distributed among panel operators managing the betting operations,” the agency stated.
The Proceeds of Crime (PoC) generated from the commission of scheduled offences were systematically layered through thousands of mules or dummy bank accounts opened using the KYC documents of unsuspecting individuals.
Subsequently, the ED said, the illicit funds were transferred outside India through hawala channels, cryptocurrency transactions and complex financial layering mechanisms, and were eventually invested in high-value movable and immovable assets in the UAE and India.
So far, ED has conducted search operations at more than 175 premises across the country in connection with this case. Further, 13 persons have been arrested in the case, and 74 persons have been arraigned as accused in five Prosecution Complaints filed before the Special Court (PMLA), Raipur.
Also, the ED said, applications under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, have been filed against Sourabh Chandrakar, Ravi Uppal, Anil Agrawal alias Atul Agrawal and Shubham Soni for declaring them Fugitive Economic Offenders as well as confiscation of properties owned by them. As of date, total attachment, seizure and freezing of movable and immovable properties stands at Rs 4,336 crore.
ED said it remains committed to dismantling and uprooting the entire illegal betting ecosystem and its international financial network.
The agency is also taking sustained action to trace and attach the Proceeds of Crime generated through the illegal betting operations. (With inputs from ANI)
