India police bust $2.4m crypto scam in Assam with alleged ties to China
Cyber fraud has become a growing menace, and law enforcement agencies across India are working to tackle the problem. On 1 March 2025, in a late-night operation, the police arrested three individuals involved in a large-scale cryptocurrency scam, deceiving over 2,000 victims, in the northeastern state of Assam.
Assam police late-night operation
In a precisely planned operation, Assam Police raided the Fakirganj Police Station area in South Salmara Mankachar district. The raid was led by DySP (DSB), DySP (B), and SI (P) Ishan Jyoti Saikia under the supervision of ASP Headquarters. Personnel from the Kharuabandha outpost also played a crucial role in the operation.
The individuals arrested in connection with the cyber fraud case are Asadul Islam (25), Hashanur Zaman (28), and Kobad Ali Mollah (28). They were operating an illegal financial scheme under the guise of the Reward Social Network (RSN) Crypto Currency Token.
On questioning, the suspects confirmed being involved in the scam. They confessed to manipulating the price of cryptocurrency and forcing the victims to invest in the fake RSN game. The mastermind behind the operation, primary suspect Hekmot Ali Sarkar, is on the run. Authorities are working on capturing him.
The financial scale of the fraud
The accused lured unsuspecting victims into investing in RSN Crypto Currency Token, promising enormous returns. Each investor was required to put in a minimum of ₹50,000 ($572.2), with the fraudsters claiming a 2 percent daily return through a fabricated RSN game. Investigations suggest that the total funds misappropriated range between ₹10-20 crore ($1.2 million to $2.4 million), impacting over 2,000 victims in Assam and neighbouring Meghalaya.
How the fraudsters operated
The criminals shared a fraudulent website link and used online payment platforms such as PhonePe and Paytm. They converted the funds into USDT (US Dollar Tokens) through China-linked crypto exchanges like Binance before transferring the money to undisclosed international entities.
The fraudsters also rented bank accounts across India to facilitate illegal transactions. They reportedly paid ₹1,000 to ₹2,000 ($12 to $24) per account per month to individuals allowing their accounts to be misused. During the operation, police seized eight mobile phones, two laptops, and eleven SIM cards, all containing crucial evidence related to the scam.
The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) was consulted, and technical analysis traced the fraudulent website’s links back to China. The website was hosted on Amazon servers. An FIR has been lodged, and the arrested individuals are in police custody as investigations continue.
Recent crypto scams in India
Cyber fraud is not new to India, with several notable cases making headlines. The GainBitcoin scam resulted in estimated losses of $800 million, while the Coin ZX fraud saw the arrest of Managing Director Ravi Mahaseth in Mumbai for a $23 million Bitcoin scam.
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has intensified its crackdown on crypto-related scams. Recently, they seized assets worth $190 million linked to the BitConnect Ponzi scheme.
