The Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department (CID) has dismantled a major transnational cryptocurrency investment fraud in which a victim from Tenali was cheated of approximately ₹15 crore (around $1.5 million). The case, registered at the CID Police Station in Mangalagiri, marks one of the most complex cross-border cybercrime recoveries in the state's history, with a court directing the full restitution of defrauded assets to the victim.

How the Fraud Was Executed

According to the CID, the victim was lured with promises of high returns on cryptocurrency investments and subsequently induced to transfer funds from her bank accounts into 13 non-custodial cryptocurrency wallets — one on Robinhood and 12 on-chain wallets. She was then persuaded by the accused to move those funds into fraudulent investment platforms Honeycombapi.org and Alibarbit.bit, believing them to be legitimate.

A total of 27 cryptocurrency transactions involving Bitcoin, Solana, and Dogecoin, worth approximately $1.5 million, were made to the fraudulent platforms. The funds were then routed through structured layering patterns and multiple mule accounts before ultimately reaching Gate Global Corporation, a cryptocurrency exchange based in the Cayman Islands.

The Investigation: Blockchain Analysis and International Coordination

CID investigators conducted detailed blockchain transaction analysis and coordinated internationally to trace the movement of the defrauded cryptocurrency. 15 Bitcoin transactions were specifically traced to four accounts on the Gate.io exchange linked to the organised crime syndicate. The identified assets were subsequently frozen through judicial proceedings.

The investigation was carried out with technical assistance and coordination from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), under the Ministry of Home Affairs. This kind of multi-agency collaboration — combining state-level CID resources with central coordination — is increasingly becoming standard practice in transnational cybercrime probes.

Arrests: A Truly Transnational Syndicate

The CID arrested eight accused in connection with the syndicate. Of those arrested, two are from Hyderabad, two from Maharashtra, one from Malaysia, two from China, and one from Portugal. A charge sheet has been filed against the syndicate before the competent court, the CID confirmed.

The geographic spread of the accused underscores the increasingly borderless nature of cryptocurrency fraud, where domestic victims are targeted by networks spanning multiple continents.

Court Orders Full Asset Recovery for Victim

In a significant judicial development, a court in Guntur directed Gate Global Corp. to convert the cryptocurrency assets held in the four identified accounts into USDT at the prevailing market value and transfer the entire converted amount to the victim's designated cryptocurrency wallet. The CID described this as a landmark outcome in securing the recovery of defrauded assets across international cryptocurrency platforms.

This case sets a notable precedent — not just for Andhra Pradesh but for Indian cybercrime enforcement broadly — in demonstrating that blockchain evidence can be leveraged effectively to obtain foreign asset recovery orders.