Ahmedabad Crime Branch nabs crypto scam accused who duped 100 Mumbai investors

The Crime Branch of Ahmedabad has arrested a 47-year-old man who was allegedly on the run for nearly two years after cheating more than 100 investors in Mumbai’s Dahisar area by luring them into a cryptocurrency investment scheme that promised exorbitant returns.

The accused, Sujit Shankarrao Jadav, a software professional, was apprehended from Ahmedabad airport, police said on Monday. He was wanted in a case registered at Dahisar Police Station, Mumbai, under sections of BNS, along with sections of the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID) Act.

As per Crime Branch officials, Jadav, originally a resident of Satara district in Maharashtra and currently living in Naroda, Ahmedabad, had started a cryptocurrency-related venture in Dahisar in 2021 along with his associates.

Police said the accused and his partners operated an office under the guise of a “currency investment” firm and enticed people from Dahisar and nearby areas to invest in cryptocurrency and crypto mining schemes by promising returns of up to four times the invested amount. Trusting these assurances, several individuals invested large sums of money.

“After collecting crores of rupees from investors, the accused allegedly diverted the funds and went absconding. More than 100 people are believed to have been cheated in this case,” a senior Crime Branch officer said.

Following sustained coordination with Mumbai Police and technical surveillance, the Ahmedabad Crime Branch tracked Jadav’s movements and arrested him upon his arrival at the city airport. He has been handed over for further legal proceedings, officials said.

Investigators are now probing the money trail and examining whether additional victims or accomplices are involved in the alleged fraud.