The ED of India Freezes More Crypto in E-Nuggets Case

The ED of India Freezes More Crypto in E-Nuggets Case

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) of India says it has frozen more cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Tether, and the WazirX token, WRX. The action is part of its investigation into the mobile gaming app E-Nuggets's case. In its latest announcement, the ED has revealed that nearly 86 bitcoins found at crypto exchange Binance were frozen.

Bitcoin, Tether, and Wazirx Tokens Frozen

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) announced on Friday that it has frozen more cryptocurrencies under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED is the Government of India’s Law Enforcement and Economic Intelligence Agency. The announcement details:

"The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has frozen the Wazirx token, WRX, and stablecoin, USDT, cryptocurrencies, and utility tokens worth INR 47.64 lakh."

The ED initiated a money laundering investigation against Aamir Khan and others relating to the E-Nugget gaming app based on the FIR dated Feb. 15, 2021.

Aamir Khan, S/O Nesar Ahmed Khan, launched E-Nuggets, "which was planned for defrauding the public," the ED said. "Further, after collecting a sizable amount of money from the public, the withdrawal from the said app was suddenly stopped on the pretext of various excuses."

The agency explained that its investigations have revealed that the accused transferred the amount earned through the E-Nuggets gaming app using a cryptocurrency exchange, elaborating:

"An amount equivalent to INR 47.64 lakh was found in the wallet of crypto exchange Wazirx belonging to Aamir Khan and its associates, and the same has been frozen under PMLA." In an earlier raid, the ED had seized INR 17.32 crore in cash from the residential premises of Amir Khan.

More Bitcoin Seized at Binance

The latest announcement by the ED states:

"85.91870554 bitcoins worth USD 1,674,255.755.7 (INR 13.56 crore) were discovered in balance at Binance crypto exchange, which has been frozen."

In an earlier announcement, the ED said it had frozen 77.62710139 bitcoins at Binance.

Binance was believed to have acquired WazirX in 2019. However, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) recently said that the acquisition "was never completed," emphasizing that "Binance has never at any point owned any shares of Zanmai Labs, the entity operating Wazirx."

The ED froze Wazirx's bank assets worth more than USD 8 million in August. However, earlier this month, Wazirx said that its bank accounts had been unfrozen. Following Wazirx, the ED froze crypto and bank assets worth USD 46 million at Vauld, a crypto platform backed by Peter Thiel. In August, the agency searched the cryptocurrency exchange Coinswitch Kuber. However, the CEO of the exchange said that it was not related to money laundering investigations.