ED arrests Ashish Malik for duping thousands on pretext of investing in Russian oil firm, crypto coins

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has taken Ashish Malik into its custody on September 10, 2022, almost three months after he was arrested by the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) in Delhi. As per news reports, Malik was arrested for duping more than 1,000 people on the pretext of making investments in a Russian oil company, Rosneft, and crypto coins. Earlier, Malik was arrested by the Delhi Police’s Economic Offence Wing on May 30 this year for the same crime and was lodged in the Tihar Jail. A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Hyderabad authorised the ED to arrest him, the agency said in a statement issued on Tuesday. The accused is a resident of Kakrola in Delhi and is an MBA graduate.  

The case

According to the cops, the accused along with his accomplices Sunil Singh and Sandeep Kaushik promised people that their scheme, Rosneft Hedge Fund, would give them a return of 20% per month. They also launched two crypto coins, ‘RHFCOIN’ and ‘RHFGOLD’, and collected millions of funds from investors across the country. In return, they invested the whole amount in cryptocurrencies, largely Bitcoin, the cops added.  

Subsequently, the accused siphoned off the funds collected. The proceeds of crime, in this case, are estimated to be Rs 52 crore. However, the ED would conduct further investigations to unearth the actual amount.

ED sources said Malik and his associates would organise seminars in five-star hotels and promise the investors high returns in exchange for their investments.