ED attaches assets worth Rs 3.68 Cr in Odisha online cricket betting case

The accused— Dinesh Kumar Rathi, R Lalie Achary and their accomplices allegedly committed the offence of illegal online cricket betting and lured the gullible public to invest money in this racket.

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday said it has attached bank deposits and immovable assets worth Rs 3.68 crore in a money-laundering investigation linked to a case of illegal online cricket betting in Odisha.

The accused— Dinesh Kumar Rathi, R Lalie Achary and their accomplices were first booked by the Odisha Police under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Prize Chit and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978.

The accused "allegedly committed the offence of illegal online cricket betting and lured the gullible public to invest money in this racket".

They gave the investors false assurances of getting a profitable margin of return while siphoning off their hard-earned money, the ED said in a statement.

The accused allegedly accumulated 'proceeds of crime', which were subsequently 'invested' in properties and also for their personal gain, it said.

A provisional order for the attachment of bank balances worth Rs 2.14 crore and immovable assets, situated in Odisha, Kolkata and Pune, valued at Rs 1.54 crore belonging to Rathi and other associates has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the agency added.