Indian authorities freeze $4.8 million in cryptocurrency fraud involving Coinbase users

According to Foresight News, the Indian law enforcement agency has released an investigation into a large-scale cryptocurrency fraud case and frozen assets worth 428 million rupees (approximately 4.8 million US dollars) of Chirag Tomar, his relatives, and related entities involved in the fraud. This enforcement action is carried out in accordance with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), including the seizure of 18 immovable properties and multiple bank accounts located in Delhi. Chirag Tomar is the main planner of a cryptocurrency phishing scam that lasted from mid-2021 to the end of 2023, mainly targeting users of the exchange Coinbase. They lured users to log in by imitating the fake website or search engine optimization (SEO) techniques of the cryptocurrency trading platform Coinbase, thereby stealing approximately $20 million worth of cryptocurrency.