ED arrests 2 CAs for Committing Rs. 641cr Cyber Financial Fraud Case Post-SC direction to Surrender

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested two CharteredAccountants related to cyber-enabled financial fraud amounting to approximately ₹641 crore after the apex court direction to surrender.

The accused, CA Ashok Kumar Sharma and CA Bhaskar Yadav, were arrested on 28 February 2026 by the ED Headquarters Unit in New Delhi Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).

According to the investigation, the syndicate targeted innocent citizens through various cyber fraud techniques such as fake investment opportunities, part-time job schemes, QR-code scams, phishing operations, and other online inducements.

The ED in its press release stated that the laundered funds were transferred using Indian bank-issued VISA and MasterCard debit cards to a UAE-based fintech platform named PYYPL, which offers internationally usable prepaid cards regulated by the Abu Dhabi Global Market Financial Services Regulatory Authority.

From these digital wallets, the funds were either withdrawn abroad, particularly in Dubai through ATMs and point-of-sale transactions, or converted into virtual digital assets through the Binance cryptocurrency exchange.

The cryptocurrency was subsequently routed through a complex chain of custodial and non-custodial wallets in order to conceal the money trail and project the proceeds of crime as legitimate assets.

Also read: ED Attaches ₹18.1 Cr Assets Linked to 1xBet Illegal Online Betting Platform, Issues Public Advisory

“During investigation, it was revealed that a structured syndicate, comprising of well-educated professionals, including Chartered Accountants Ashok Kumar Sharma, Bhaskar Yadav, Ajay, and Vipin Yadav was operating a coordinated money laundering scheme” said the ED.

Since the searches in November 2024, both accused absconded and repeatedly sought anticipatory bail to evade investigation.

However, their bail pleas were rejected by the Special Court on 15 January 2025 and later by the Delhi High Court on 2 February 2026, stating the seriousness of the allegations and the stringent provisions under Section 45 of the PMLA.

Bhaskar Yadav subsequently approached the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition, which was also dismissed on 18 February 2026, with a direction to surrender before the concerned court.

Following their surrender, the ED arrested both accused under Section 19 of the PMLA. As per the reliable sources, ED has arrested ten individuals.

The probe agency also issued two Provisional Attachment Orders (PAOs) attaching movable and immovable properties worth approximately ₹8.67 crore. The investigation is continuing.

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