TechFlow news, Indian law enforcement authorities announced on August 17 that they have arrested a suspect, Shailesh Babulal Bhatt, suspected of kidnapping individuals linked to BitConnect. According to the Ahmedabad Enforcement Directorate (ED), Bhatt, having suffered investment losses in BitConnect Coin, kidnapped two employees of BitConnect founder Satish Kumbhani in an attempt to "recover his investment."
The ED accuses Bhatt and his accomplices of extorting 2,091 bitcoins, 11,000 litecoins, and approximately $1.7 million, amounting to a total value of around $125 million.
Bhatt was arrested on August 13 under India's Prevention of Money Laundering Act and remains in ED custody. The ED stated that assets worth $52 million have been recovered so far, and the investigation is ongoing.
BitConnect was launched in 2016 and collapsed in 2018, allegedly a Ponzi scheme that caused $2.4 billion in losses. Its founder, Kumbhani, is currently missing.
