HYDERABAD
The cybercrime unit of Cyberabad police facilitated the refund of cryptocurrency to a victim who had fallen prey to an online investment scam.
The recovery marks a first-of-its-kind case where crypto assets lost in cyber fraud were traced and reimbursed, following legal intervention and international cooperation.
The case was registered on February 2, 2024. The investigation revealed that the victim was lured into investing 24,275.8 USDT, equivalent to approximately ₹20.39 lakh, to multiple private cryptocurrency wallets. The funds were solicited under the guise of entering trading contracts with the promise of high returns.
Following his complaint, the investigators tracked the digital trail of the transactions. A substantial portion of the funds was found to have been moved to a wallet associated with an international cryptocurrency exchange headquartered in Seychelles, Africa.
The police issued a formal notice to the exchange, requesting Know Your Customer (KYC) and wallet details linked to the suspect. The exchange complied, revealing the identity of the wallet holder and confirming an available balance of 0.03979 BTC, roughly equivalent to $3,746.58 or ₹3.22 lakh.
The police sought a debit freeze order from the court, which was duly granted. Upon further submission of all relevant documents and transaction flow details, the court directed the exchange to initiate a refund of the frozen assets to the victim’s wallet.
Subsequently, the exchange refunded 3,125.42 USDT — approximately ₹2.68 lakh — to the victim.
Following the case, the cybercrime police issued an advisory urging the citizens to exercise caution while engaging in online investment and trading activities. They warned against responding to unsolicited messages on platforms such as WhatsApp or Telegram, particularly those promising quick profits or requesting the installation of unfamiliar applications.
Published – May 03, 2025 09:37 am IST
