The Enforcement Directorate searched 17 locations in the Parimatch money laundering case and seized cash, gold, documents and devices. Investigators said the probe tracked betting proceeds through mule accounts, travel operators, hawala channels and crypto wallets.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has conducted searches at 17 locations across five states as part of its money laundering probe into the Cyprus-based online betting platform Parimatch, which generated more than Rs 3,000 crore in a year.
The searches were carried out by the ED’s Mumbai Zonal Office on September 2 and the locations searched were spread across Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Delhi, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh.
The raids resulted in the seizure of movable assets worth approximately Rs 2.11 crore, including around Rs 61 lakh in cash and a 1-kg gold bar.
The agency also seized incriminating documents and digital devices and froze bank balances amounting to approximately Rs 37 crore.
With the latest action, the ED said it has so far frozen or seized assets worth approximately Rs 150 crore in the case.
The investigation was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered by the Cyber Police Station in Mumbai against Parimatch.com for duping users through its online betting platform.
According to the ED, betting proceeds were initially routed through multiple mule accounts, including accounts onboarded as merchant accounts, before being layered through apparently legitimate financial and commercial channels.
The investigation also found that Cash Management System (CMS) and Domestic Money Transfer (DMT) agents were used to layer the proceeds.
According to the ED, funds deposited into merchant and mule accounts were transferred to CMS- and DMT-linked accounts. Through this mechanism, banking funds replaced the legitimate cash-collection cycle, while equivalent physical cash was made available to individuals associated with the betting network.
The cash was then allegedly converted into USDT through hawala and crypto operators before being transferred to crypto wallets controlled by the offshore Parimatch network.
The ED also uncovered a parallel route involving Indian tour and travel operators.
According to the ED, funds originating from the Parimatch network were routed through payment intermediaries into the bank accounts of Indian tour and travel operators without any corresponding provision of services.
The bank credits were allegedly used to settle amounts purportedly payable to the travel operators by their overseas clients. At the same time, corresponding amounts were collected in physical cash from those clients outside India by Parimatch handlers.
The ED said transactions amounting to at least Rs 200 crore were routed through two such tour and travel operators.
