At least 900 people were scammed by a 31-year-old man, Nishad, through a fake cryptocurrency that was never launched, India's financial investigative agency, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has stated.
The investigative agency estimated that the scam raked in over INR 12 billion ($161 million).
"Ten Morris Coins were valued at INR 15,000 ($201) with a lock-in period of 300 days. The currency was fake", an ED official told The Indian Express. "The promoters of the coin siphoned out the money and illegally invested in immovable properties in the Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka, particularly in real estate, without showing any source of income".
Last November, the Kerala state police received several complaints of cheating and fraud in which all of the victims were duped by a company called Longrich Technologies.
Victims told the police that the firm stopped transferring the promised returns. Police realised that the company had scammed individuals across states — including Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
The case was later transferred to the Enforcement Directorate.