Home Minister Araga Jnanendra on Thursday said the government would investigate the bitcoin scam if those who had been cheated provided evidence.
The scam revolves around a money-laundering case against Srikrishna (Sriki), 26, who along with his associates has been booked for allegedly stealing ₹11.5 crore from a Karnataka government’s e-procurement portal and for hacking into gaming sites and international cryptocurrency exchanges.
Although JD(S) member T.A. Saravana asked the Home Minister about the status of the investigation, the Minister said the State government was transparent in its investigation. Pointing out that the government had responded several times to the discussion on the issue held in the House, the Minister said, “If you provide any proof, we will investigate.”
Who has complained?
He said an investigation into the cryptocurrency scam done in the U.S. had not shown the involvement of anyone from Karnataka or any other Indian State. “We have seen media reports that several have lost crores of rupees. But who are those who have lost the money? They should have complained. Our police initially found a crypto coin in the wallet but later it was not there. Sriki had shown something else. Even now if you give us evidence, we will investigate,” he said.
Five people, including Sriki, have been released on bail in connection with the bitcoin scam. Apart from this, 79 cases have been registered in various cybercrime police stations. The Minister said that only in some cases the accused had been arrested and their trial was at various stages.
‘What are police doing?’
Intervening, Leader of the Opposition B.K. Hariprasad said, “You want us to give evidence? What is your police force doing? Many bigwigs are involved and it is the government’s responsibility to find evidence. There is a cybercrime cell for this,” he said.
