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A right to information (RTI) activist recently made a startling allegation in connection with the multi-crore Karnataka Bitcoin scam. The RTI activist said senior police officers and leaders encashed Bitcoins that they got as bribes from hacker Srikrishna Ramesh alias Sriki.
A complaint was filed on April 26, 2021 by RTI activist AR Ashok Kumar Adiga with the Additional Commissioner of Police, City Crime Branch with the subject being “Corruption in the drug case by high ranking police officials and highly influential politicians”.
According to Adiga, he informed the police through his complaint that police officials had collected a huge amount of bribe money through hacker Srikrishna Ramesh alias Sriki in April itself. He wrote, “I am sure that you are aware that as on date 12,900 Bitcoins are cashed from Sriki (when he was in your custody). The total value is thousands of crores. This is apart from the encashment by your junior officers.”
Read | 1st person to crack Bitfinex, multiple hacking scams: Karnataka hacker’s tell-all statement to police | Exclusive
He alleged that senior police officers like Joint Commissioner of Police Sandeep Patil and Police Commissioner Kamal Pant ignored his complaint. Adiga has also shared images of WhatsApp chats, claiming they were sent to top IPS officers, including the ones mentioned above.
In the complaint, Adiga wrote that he would be sending all the details to the office of the Prime Minister, Union Home Minister and Union Cabinet Secretary.
Speaking to India Today TV, Adiga said top-level CCB officials had taken 9,600 Bitcoins from Sriki in January and then in April, they took 3,300 more Bitcoins from him. In the letter, he said, “It was found that Shirke (Sriki) had hacked the official website of Bitcoin and had illegally transferred thousands of Bitcoins to his wallet.”
Watch | War of words breaks out between Congress and BJP over Karnataka’s ‘bitcoin scam’
Adiga went on to say that a case was registered against Sriki in Amsterdam, Netherlands. “The National Police Corps (NPC) of Amsterdam is investigating this case and is tracking the Bitcoins transferred by Shirke. (Every Bitcoin has a UNIQUE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER). I have collected a copy of all these documents and contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States of America.”
The FBI requested him to provide documents to Interpol in Bengaluru, he added. “The liaison officer of Interpol, Bengaluru is Umesh Kumar, ADGP, CID. I do not have in the Indian agencies and so I wrote in detail to the Interpol in France,” Adiga said.
He mentioned that after an inquiry, the office in France asked him to contact the Interpol Global Complex for Innovation in Singapore. Adiga stated that he contacted the Singapore office, which asked him to deliver the documents to NPC and FBI.
Adiga further claimed to have 3 files, 1 from Amsterdam and 2 from the USA. “The file also contains screenshots of nearly 1,017 (whale alerts). The message received by FBI every time a Bitcoin was cashed,” he added.
Adiga also alleged in the letter that “as per records totally 17 people are involved in this whole deal”, adding that he informed the police so that no such transactions would take place in future.
Adiga also wrote that he was planning to send the documents to officers in the central government. “This will be proof in case your department or others try to implicate me in false cases or harm me,” he added.
Also Read | Karnataka Bitcoin scam: How Srikrishna Ramesh ran his network
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Bitcoin scam: RTI activist claims Karnataka cops, netas encashed 12,900 coins worth thousands of crores – India Today
