Karnataka Bitcoin scam: cyber expert undergoes scientific tests as SIT hunts for trail of missing cryptocurrency

The technological tests were conducted to ascertain the whereabouts of 2 of 3 nano ledgers oregon hardware crypto wallets that were bought astatine the behest of the cyber adept and reportedly utilized to transportation cryptocurrency erstwhile Srikrishna was successful constabulary custody.

Santhosh Kumar was arrested successful February by the SIT successful the Bitcoin scam and is specifically accused of illegally accessing the crypto wallet of Robin Khandelwal, an accountant and subordinate of Srikrishna, to transportation Bitcoin of the worth of Rs 1,83,624 to his ain crypto wallet, pursuing the arrests of the duo successful 2020. The transaction was allegedly facilitated by constabulary officers who were investigating the hacker.

In caller weeks the SIT has referred to voluntary statements of the hacker Srikrishna and 2 method experts who were witnesses successful the lawsuit successful 2020 to suggest that CCB constabulary officers perchance facilitated the amerciable accessing of crypto wallets containing 4,000 Bitcoins worthy astir Rs 850 crore belonging to the hacker pursuing his arrest.

Sources said the SIT conducted the polygraph and encephalon mapping technological tests connected the ground of tribunal orders and with the consent of the cyber expert. The tests are expected to bespeak whether the cyber adept has cognition of the destiny of the Bitcoins recovered with the hacker successful 2020.

Narcoanalysis not carried out

While a narcoanalysis trial was besides projected and cleared, it was not carried retired connected relationship of the wellness information of the cyber expert, sources said.

The SIT has alleged during the earlier bail arguments of Santhosh Kumar and different cyber experts that the services of the experts were utilized to delete the bash past connected the Amazon web server wherever the crypto wallets of the hacker were located.

“As a effect important accusation connected the Bitcoin wallets successful the Amazon Web Server was erased and enactment retired of scope of investigations,” the SIT alleged earlier this year.

The SIT has besides recovered that erstwhile Srikrishna was successful custody, Santhosh Kumar obtained 3 nano ledgers oregon hardware crypto wallets from Surat done his associates, which were fixed to a constabulary serviceman Prashanth Babu, who is an accused successful the Bitcoin scam.

A ample quantity of Bitcoins that were successful Srikrishna’s wallets were transferred to these hardware wallets successful January 2021, the SIT has alleged. The SIT has reported the betterment of 1 of the 3 hardware crypto wallets from Prashanth Babu and is seeking to find the 2 different hardware crypto wallets allegedly utilized for the transportation of the Bitcoins.

“There is accusation astir the transportation of Bitcoins and wallets of Sriki to nano ledgers (hardware crypto wallets),” the SIT said during bail arguments successful tribunal proceedings.

Cyber adept successful investigations

Santhosh Kumar’s services were often utilized by the Bengaluru constabulary successful cyber cases betwixt 2015 and 2021. Apart from GCID, which helium operated successful Bengaluru, the cyber adept is besides linked to a fewer different firms successful Karnataka. He started a institution called Geek Studio successful Dubai successful December 2022 on with a Bengaluru associate. “He had worked antecedently successful Dubai and had concern contacts,” a root said.

The Bitcoin scam from the BJP tenure of 2019-2023 is wide believed to person governmental ramifications. The SIT was constituted successful July 2023 by the Congress authorities pursuing allegations of large-scale corruption successful handling the hacker’s cases by the constabulary section nether BJP rule.

After helium was arrested successful 2020, Srikrishna revealed to the police, arsenic per documents including his voluntary statements filed successful the courts, that helium was successful possession of a ample magnitude of Bitcoins. He claimed that the constabulary had pressured him into giving distant the Bitcoins to them.

“I understood the lawsuit script that adjacent if I bash not springiness them the Bitcoins, they tin usage forensic methods to find the Bitcoins aft a speech with the investigating officer. So station consultations, I voluntarily [agreed] to springiness distant the Bitcoins which I had kept successful assorted wallets successful antithetic cryptocurrencies,” reads a connection attributed to Srikrishna which is simply a portion of the chargesheet successful 1 of the hacking cases filed against him successful 2021.

At the clip of the hacker’s apprehension successful 2020, the worth of 1 Bitcoin was successful the scope of $25000 (around Rs 20 lakh) and it soared to arsenic precocious arsenic $60,000 (around Rs 50 lakh) by April 2021.

The SIT has attempted to ascertain the veracity of the allegations made by the hacker that constabulary officers took distant his cryptocurrency pursuing his arrest.

The SIT has filed a lawsuit of demolition of documents and cheating against officers of the Bengaluru CCB constabulary successful transportation with the alleged manipulation of physics devices seized from Srikrishna and his associates.

Forensic evidence

The SIT quoted a integer forensics study from the authorities forensic subject laboratory dated February 20, 2023, to accidental that an Apple Macbook and a hard disk seized connected November 17, 2020, by the constabulary were recovered to person been tampered with betwixt November 18 and 20. A 2nd Macbook, seized connected November 19, 2020, was tampered with betwixt November 20 and 21, it is alleged.

Citing a CDAC forensic study dated January 23, 2024, the SIT has stated that 1 of the laptops seized from Srikrishna connected November 17, 2020, was utilized to entree crypto wallets astatine cryptocurrency websites and to entree online gaming platforms portion it was successful constabulary custody.

The study besides recovered that anonymising tools were utilized to conceal online activities, information manipulation, transportation of files to outer devices, deletion of history—which amounts to tampering of integer evidence—the SIT has said.

The SIT was constituted by the Congress authorities successful June 2023 to analyse the alleged Bitcoin scam wherever cryptocurrency worthy crores of rupees, allegedly stolen by Srikrishna from planetary exchanges and gaming sites, were successful crook pocketed by constabulary and politicians aft the hacker’s apprehension successful 2020.

Multiple hacking cases

Srikrishna is accused of aggregate hacking crimes successful India too, including the extortion of wealth from gaming sites similar Poker Baazi successful 2020, the theft of Rs 11.5 crore from the Karnataka e-procurement portal successful 2019 and 60.6 Bitcoins worthy Rs 1.64 crore successful 2017 from the Unocoin cryptocurrency speech successful the state.

Srikrishna and his accountant Robin Khandelwal were arrested by the Bengaluru CCB constabulary successful November 2020 connected charges of buying drugs online utilizing Bitcoin.

The handling of the cases involving the hacker by the constabulary nether the BJP authorities successful Karnataka aft the arrests successful November 2020 resulted successful allegations of corruption by the Congress erstwhile it was successful absorption betwixt 2020 and 2023.

There are allegations of constabulary officials grabbing a ample cache of Bitcoins that was recovered successful the crypto wallets of Srikrishna aft his arrest.

After the SIT was constituted 2 FIRs were filed successful August 2023 and January 2024 with respect to the tampering of grounds and alleged amerciable confinement of the hacker and his subordinate by the constabulary successful 2020-21.

The SIT has arrested 4 erstwhile Bengaluru CCB constabulary officers—Prashanth Babu, Chandradhar S R, Lakshmikanthaiah and Sridhar Pujar—in the 2 cases. It besides arrested Santhosh Kumar, the cyber expert. The constabulary officers and the cyber adept person been granted bail by courts.