E-Paper
ED arrests key accused in Ludhiana industrialist Oswal’s digital arrest case
The accused, identified as Arpit Rathore, was taken into custody by the ED’s Jalandhar regional office on December 31 after the agency carried out searches at his premises at Kanpur. He was produced in the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Jalandhar that sent Rathore to ED custody till January 5.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested the kingpin involved in the digital arrest-linked money laundering investigation related to Ludhiana-based industrialist SP Oswal.
The accused, identified as Arpit Rathore, was taken into custody by the ED’s Jalandhar regional office on December 31 after the agency carried out searches at his premises at Kanpur. He was produced in the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Jalandhar that sent Rathore to ED custody till January 5.
An ED official said Rathore allegedly played a significant role in not only the digital arrest of Oswal but also in several other cybercrimes and frauds targeting innocent people.
The agency had already seized some digital devices and ₹14 lakh in cash during the action.
The agency had already arrested Rathore’s accomplice identified as Rumi Kalita from Assam on December 23.
The ED initiated investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by the Cyber Crime Police Station, Ludhiana, under the BNSS, 2023. Nine additional FIRs related to cybercrime or digital arrest involving the same group were also included in the probe.
Oswal, the chairman of the Vardhman Group, was put under digital arrest in August 2023 by fraudsters who impersonated as officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and extorted ₹7 crore from him, the agencies said.
The agency probe revealed that the same group defrauded others also of ₹1.73 crore through digital arrest and cyberfraud scams.
“Rathore maintained contact with foreign associates to carry out these crimes, aiding foreign nationals by providing mule accounts and facilitating the transfer of illegal proceeds to foreign jurisdictions. In return, these foreign nationals compensated Rathore and obtained details about the mule accounts to help move cybercrime profits abroad. Additionally, it was discovered that Rathore received his share of the criminal proceeds in the form of USDT cryptocurrency and Indian rupees,” the ED probe found.
The federal agency spokesperson said the funds were routed through multiple mule accounts operated by the accused, Rumi Kalita of Guwahati and Rathore of Kanpur. It was further determined that Kalita established an association with Atanu Choudhary and utilised bank account belonging to his entity Ms/ Frozenman Warehousing and Logistics and other entity Rigglo Ventures Pvt Ltd to launder illicit proceeds.
It added, “The funds derived from nine digital arrest cases were deposited into the accounts of Frozenman Warehousing and Logistics, while proceeds from two cases were placed in the account of Rigglo Ventures Pvt Ltd. These amounts were subsequently transferred to more than 200 mule bank accounts, facilitating the diversion of the proceeds. The completion of these transactions was enabled by Rathore, who instructed Kalita on transferring funds once victims had made their deposits.”
