NEW DELHI: A Cyber Cell team of Delhi Police Crime Branch has arrested two cheats who channelised the multi-level marketing technique to sell fake cryptocurrency by the name of 'RHF Coin' and 'RHF Gold,' from 'Rosneft Hedge Fund.'
Police said on Friday that the accused were identified as Ashish Malik (33), a resident of Delhi's Palam Colony, and Sandeep Kaushik (32), a resident of Jhajjar in Haryana.
A case against the duo was registered in January based on a complaint by one Vinod Kumar, who stated that the accused cheated him of Rs 7,50,000 by luring him to invest in Rosneft Hedge Fund in exchange of handsome profits
The accused posed to the complainant as directors of the company, which they claimed was a part of the Russia-based Oil Company Rosneft.
The accused would take money in the form of Bitcoins, cash and cheque, and thereafter convert the amount invested in the Rosneft Hedge Fund into RHF Coin and RHF Gold without the consent of investors.
"The accused lured people to invest into newly launched cryptocurrency RHF Coin, which were initially launched at a price of Rs 3.50 per coin, with a promise of high profit. But presently, those coins are of no use.
"Ashish Malik, Sandeep Kaushik and Sunil Singh Chauhan, resident of Barnala, Punjab introduced themselves as owners of Rosneft Hedge Fund Company to the complainant," said Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Alok Kumar.
As per Reserve Bank of India guidelines, the creation, trading or usage of virtual currencies, including Bitcoin, as a medium of payment is not authorised by any bank or monetary authority.