Bitcoin case: SIT arrests former police inspector and pvt company CEO

Team Udayavani, Jan 27, 2024, 9:37 AM IST

In a significant development related to the Bitcoin case, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) has apprehended a former police inspector and the CEO of a private company.

The accused have been identified as Prashanth Babu DM, former head of the Central Crime Branch’s Technical Support Centre, and Santosh Kumar KS, CEO of GCID Technologies Pvt Ltd. They were remanded to seven days of police custody by a court on Thursday, police said.

The FIR, filed by the CID’s cybercrime police on Wednesday, sheds light on intricate details surrounding the allegations. It accuses the suspects of wrongful confinement, criminal breach of trust, and destruction of electronic records.

The investigation reportedly unfolded a narrative wherein Babu and Kumar allegedly kept the serial hacker, Srikrishna alias Sriki, in illegal confinement at the CAR guesthouse in Bengaluru from November 14 to 17, 2020.

The FIR also implicates three former CCB inspectors — Lakshmikanthaiah, Chandradhar, and Sridhar K Pujar. All three have been served notices under CrPc Section 41a to appear before the police for questioning. The charges against them involve illegal detentions and the destruction of evidence related to the Bitcoin case.

According to the FIR, Sriki was allegedly coerced into hacking websites and destroying evidence. The suspects purportedly accessed cryptocurrency wallets, transferring Rs 1.8 lakh worth of Bitcoin unlawfully. CEO Santosh Kumar is said to have played a role in providing technical assessment during the investigation.

Babu is accused of purchasing a laptop for Rs 60,000 and providing it to Srikrishna for illicit activities, including hacking. The FIR also details instances where Sriki was taken to the GCID office and confined there during December 2020 and January 2021.

Background of Bitcoin Case:

The Bitcoin case gained attention when the CCB arrested Srikri on November 17, 2020, accusing him of ordering hydro ganja on the Dark Web using Bitcoins obtained through hacking government websites. The alleged siphoning of Rs 11.5 crore led to the registration of a case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and various sections of the IPC.

Last year, the Congress government formed the SIT to investigate allegations that politicians, bureaucrats, and police officers were involved in siphoning off cryptocurrency seized from Sriki.