The Bureau of Immigration (BOI) under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs has issued a Look Out Circular (LOC) against Chinese national Guanhua Wang, one of the main accused in the mega online Ponzi scam.
The LOC was issued on the request of the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of Odisha Police, an official statement said, adding that a case has been registered under different sections of the IPC, such as Sections 66-C and 66-D of the IT Act and Section 6 of the OPID Act. The case relates to the pan-India online Ponzi scam involving fraud and syphoning of hundreds of crores of rupees out of India using a complex network of mule bank accounts, shell companies and firms, and crypto-traders, the official statement said.
Forty-year-old Guanhua Wang is a resident of Flat No. 202, No. 199, Wensen Road, City of Hangzhou, District of Xihu, State of Zhenjiang, China. In 2019, he formed a company called “Bettec Technologies Private Limited” in Bangalore’s Dickenson Road. The EOW also claimed that he also controls at least two other Bangalore-based companies through his mule directors, Gamecamp Solutions Private Limited and Byrontec Technologies Private Limited.
Stating that Wang visited India six times in 2019 and 2020, the EOW said he is working or running this scam from China with the help of many India-based associates who look after the managing and arranging of mule bank accounts, shell companies and firms, crypto-traders, WhatsApp and Telegram group tutors and administrators, and also running advertisements using morphed photos of celebrities.
Initial investigations suggest the syphoning of more than Rs 100 crore by his company using such methods. EOW has frozen around Rs 70 Lakh from his company’s account. The EOW has also requested the FIU (Financial Intelligence Unit) provide details of his other accounts. In the last year, EOW Odisha has found at least three cases (including the current case) of cyber-financial fraud involving hundreds of crores of rupees being run by Chinese nationals
