
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Ashish Kakkar, a resident of Delhi, for allegedly operating a cybercrime syndicate that defrauded people across the country of ₹4,978 crore ($676 million) over the past four years. The funds were illegally transferred overseas.
Kakkar, who resides in Greater Kailash in Delhi, was apprehended at a hotel in Gurugram. The ED obtained a 10-day custody from a special court until March 12 for further investigation into the money laundering case. The probe was initiated based on multiple first information reports (FIRs) filed in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, and other states.
According to the ED, the syndicate accumulated and concealed the funds in the bank accounts of companies controlled by Kakkar and his associates. These funds were then transferred abroad through an illegal method known as the “hawala” route, using circular trading.
It is alleged that Kakkar imported numerous shipments, declaring high-value items such as rose oil and solar panel machinery, from countries like Dubai, Hong Kong, and China to Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in Mundra, Kandla, and other locations. The shipments were subsequently exported from the SEZs. Kakkar and his associates then sent outward remittances totaling approximately ₹4,978 crore ($676 million) against the imports. However, the agency claims that no remittances were received in return for the export of goods from the SEZs.
Kakkar and his accomplices created over 200 dummy companies/firms using the identities of their employees or individuals hired solely for this purpose. Although Kakkar was not officially associated with these companies, he allegedly controlled all transactions made through their bank accounts with the assistance of his associates.
The investigation revealed that all the companies controlled by Kakkar were incorporated on the same dates, shared the same addresses, and had common directors. An official stated that these dummy companies conducted significant banking transactions but failed to file their financial statements with the Registrar of Companies.
In May 2023, the ED conducted searches at 25 locations in Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh in connection with the same case. Additionally, in February-March 2024, the agency carried out searches at 14 locations related to the investigation of foreign-registered online gaming companies/websites operating in India. During these operations, the ED seized eight kilograms of gold bars worth ₹5.04 crore ($682,000), ₹75 lakh ($101,000) in cash, jewelry, high-end luxury watches, and luxury cars.
During the search at Kakkar’s premises, the officials seized PAN/Aadhaar cards used to create dummy firms, mobile phones used to operate bank accounts, and office stamps. The syndicate members used remote-based servers and laptops accessed through apps like Anydesk and Team Viewer to avoid detection. Two remotely accessed laptops were recovered and seized from a server service provider located far away from the operational locations, according to the official.