Indian National Arrested in Kathmandu for Alleged Multi-Billion Rupee Cryptocurrency Transactions
Indian national Pravesh Ali, residing in Ekantakuna, Lalitpur Metropolitan City-13, was arrested on Chaitra 6. Police had received a tip-off regarding his involvement in cryptocurrency trading. The accused was apprehended in Ekantakuna.
Ali, who rented a house in Ekantakuna, was involved in contracting tile and marble work for under-construction buildings, managing laborers. He introduced himself publicly as a 'contractor' for tiles and marble. However, upon investigation after his arrest, it was revealed that Ali was a crypto trader, SP Manohar Bhatt of the Metropolitan Crime Investigation Office told Ratopati.
Examination of his mobile phone revealed that he conducted crypto transactions via a Binance account. Investigators found details showing Ali had traded 9,181,513 USDT since 2022. This USDT amount translates to 1 billion 36 crore 80 lakh 45 thousand Nepali Rupees. Ali is a local from the Medinipur district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Also arrested in connection with the crypto trading, and part of his group, are 31-year-old Naresh Reule from Nepalgunj, Banke, and Dipti Pokharel, who resides in Nakkhu, originally from Ishwarpur, Sarlahi.
Naresh used to search for individuals in Kathmandu Valley and various cities across Nepal who possessed USDT. He would arrange meetings between those with USDT and Dipti Pokharel. After Dipti verified the USDT amount, they would purchase it using Nepali currency from Ali. DSP Anil Ghimire, involved in the investigation, stated, 'Ali is the main trader; the other two appear to be working with Ali for a commission.'
Ali would transfer the USDT amount to his Binance account at a lower price and provide the sellers with Nepali currency. Reule and Pokharel would each receive a 1 percent commission on the purchased USDT. Investigators involved in the probe suggest that Ali would sell the USDT bought in Nepal at higher prices abroad. DSP Anil Ghimire stated, 'Our investigation concludes that Ali was making money by trading at high prices.' The other two individuals received a percentage from Pravesh Ali. Cryptocurrency trading is generally conducted worldwide via digital wallet Binance accounts.
Exposure Through Reule's Statement
Police initially arrested Naresh Reule from Samakhusi, Kathmandu, on Chaitra 6. Based on his statement, the fact that Dipti Pokharel and Indian national Ali were involved in USDT trading came to light. SP Bhatt informed that Pokharel and Ali were arrested after Reule.
Police also recovered 1,530,000 in cash from Pokharel, who was arrested near the Redhan bridge in Samakhusi. Investigators suspect the cash was being taken to pay the traders for purchasing USDT. However, Pokharel has not disclosed anything about the amount.
This specific news has been automatically translated by AI. As a result, there may be some inaccuracies or language errors.
