Three arrested in ₹19 crore USDT crypto fraud linked to fake KYC website

The Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police have arrested three persons in connection with the theft of cryptocurrency funds amounting to ₹19,08,98,915 ($21,04,089 USDT) from a 44-year-old man from Kalyan Nagar. Cryptocurrency Tether is often referred to by its currency code USDT.

The fraud was carried out through a malicious website, Trontag.org, which impersonated a KYC verification platform and enabled a smart contract to transfer funds from the victim’s crypto wallet without his knowledge.

The arrested accused were identified as Sushim Shripati Gaikwad from Pune in Maharashtra, Srikanth from Hyderabad, and Lucky Choudhary from Jaipur in Rajasthan.

Police said that Gaikwad and Srikanth approached the victim under the pretext of purchasing USDT, while Choudhary allegedly designed and operated the fraudulent website.

According to the complaint, unknown persons contacted the victim expressing interest in buying USDT. “They informed him that his Tron wallet address had to undergo KYC verification through the website Trontag.org. Believing the website to be genuine, the victim accessed the link and entered his details. Soon after, $21,04,089 USDT was transferred from his Tron wallet to the accused persons’ wallet without further authorisation,” said an officer from the cyber crimes wing.

Based on the complaint, police registered a case and launched an investigation. During the probe, the role of the three accused was established and they were apprehended. Officials stated that the accused were operating in an organised manner and had allegedly cheated several victims across the country using a similar method. Efforts are underway to trace and arrest the other absconding accused.

Police said the fraudsters directed victims to connect their crypto wallets to the fake KYC website. By approving a transaction described as verification, victims unknowingly activated a malicious smart contract, which automatically transferred funds to the accused persons’ wallets.

Four mobile phones and two laptops were seized from the accused during the investigation.