Indian court sentences 14 to life in Bitcoin extortion case

An Indian anti-corruption court has sentenced 14 individuals, including 11 police officials and a former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA), to life imprisonment in a case involving the kidnapping and extortion of crypto from a Surat-based businessman in 2018.

The judgment, delivered by Special Judge B.B. Jadav in Ahmedabad on Friday, found the group guilty of criminal conspiracy, kidnapping for ransom, illegal detention, and assault,  according  to a report by The Times of India.

Among those convicted are former Amreli district superintendent of police Jagdish Patel and ex-MLA Nalin Kotadiya. All 11 police officers, including former IPS officer Patel, were also found guilty under the Prevention of Corruption Act for misconduct by public servants.

The case centers around businessman Shailesh Bhatt, who had reportedly recovered a portion of his lost investment from  BitConnect developer Dhaval Mavani  in the form of Bitcoin 

BTC$109,855, after the $900 million company he invested in shut down.

Surat businessman kidnapped over Bitcoin

Upon learning that Bhatt managed to recover some of his investments, Kotadiya and senior officers in Amreli allegedly orchestrated a plot to seize the crypto. On Feb. 11, 2018, Bhatt was abducted and illegally held at Keshav Farm near Gandhinagar.

The kidnapping was led by Amreli local crime branch inspector Anant Patel and involved multiple officers. Bhatt was reportedly beaten and coerced into admitting that he had received 752 Bitcoin from Mavani and had stored 176 of them with his associate, Kirit Paladiya. The remaining were sold for around $5 million.

Bhatt was released only after agreeing to transfer a portion of the Bitcoin and $3.6 million in cash. When the deal fell through, the accused forced Bhatt to sell 34 Bitcoin from Paladiya’s wallet, resulting in an extortion of $150,000.

Crypto kidnap probe triggers 15 arrests

Bhatt later filed a complaint with the Union Home Ministry, prompting a criminal investigation and the arrest of 15 individuals. The prosecution, led by special public prosecutor Amit Patel, presented 173 witnesses during the trial.

The court also ordered the confiscation of gold ornaments recovered from Amreli SP Patel, which will be transferred to the Master of Mint in Mumbai.

Last week, Thai authorities  arrested a South Korean man accused of helping  a call center gang launder cryptocurrencies into gold worth more than $50 million.