Eighteen individuals linked to the OneCoin cryptocurrency scheme were remanded to police custody in Mumbai on Friday, reversing an earlier court decision. A Judicial Magistrate had initially placed the accused in judicial custody last weekend, which limits direct police access for interrogations and evidence gathering.
Mumbai police quickly petitioned for a shift, arguing that police custody was essential for a thorough investigation. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Dileep Sawant stated the need to "investigate the case and to get all details of the scam." The court granted their petition, allowing authorities full access to the eighteen suspects until May 3rd. This extended access permits investigators to trace financial flows, identify other network participants, and recover digital assets, which are critical steps in complex financial fraud cases.
The Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) has intensified its efforts, forming a fourteen-team squad dedicated to the OneCoin case. Senior Inspector Shivaji Awate, EOW-I, confirmed he is assembling the unit, specifically selecting officers with experience in large-scale financial fraud investigations. This specialized approach reflects the significant scale of the alleged OneCoin operation within India. Victims across the country reportedly invested substantial sums into the scheme, which promised high returns on a cryptocurrency that never actually existed on a public blockchain.
OneCoin, widely recognized by regulators and law enforcement globally as a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme, has remained silent regarding the arrests of its affiliates in India and the ongoing regulatory investigation. This silence leaves thousands of Indian OneCoin participants without official guidance as authorities close in. The scheme's founder, Ruja Ignatova, vanished in 2017 amid international warrants, while other key figures like her brother Konstantin Ignatov and lawyer Mark Scott have faced convictions or pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering charges in the United States.
India has represented a crucial market for OneCoin's operations. Data from Alexa previously indicated India as the second and third largest source of traffic to the OneCoin and OneLife websites, respectively, highlighting the scheme's deep penetration into the country. The cancellation of scheduled OneCoin affiliate recruitment events by top promoter Tom McMurrain further signals the escalating pressure on the organization's activities within the nation. The ongoing crackdown aims to dismantle the remaining network and recover assets for defrauded investors.
The Mumbai police investigation is actively seeking to uncover the full extent of the OneCoin network in India and determine the total losses incurred by citizens.