Indian court sentences 14 people to life in prison in cryptocurrency extortion case

PANews reported on August 30 that according to Indian media Deshgujarat, an Indian anti-corruption court has sentenced 14 people to life imprisonment, including 11 police officials and a former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislative assembly member. They were charged with kidnapping an Indian businessman and extorting cryptocurrency in 2018. The judge found the gang guilty of criminal conspiracy, kidnapping for ransom, illegal detention and assault.

It is reported that Indian businessman Shailesh Bhatt recovered part of his investment in the form of Bitcoin after the collapse of BitConnect, a company he invested in. However, after learning that he had recovered part of his investment, the above-mentioned officials planned a kidnapping conspiracy to seize cryptocurrencies. In the end, Shailesh Bhatt was released only after agreeing to transfer some Bitcoin and US$3.6 million in cash.