ED set to attach assets of cricketers, actors in online betting case linked to 1xBet

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is set to attach assets worth crores of rupees belonging to cricketers, actors and influencers in connection with the 1xBet online betting case, after questioning celebrities and examining payments received for endorsements

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is soon expected to attach assets worth crores of rupees of certain sportspersons and actors under the anti-money laundering law in a case linked to an online betting and gaming platform.

Official sources told PTI that an investigation into the case related to a portal, ‘1xBet’, has found that some of these celebrities utilised the endorsement fee paid to them for acquiring a variety of assets which qualified as the “proceeds of crime” under the anti-money laundering law.

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The federal probe agency is expected to soon issue a provisional attachment order under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to attach these movable and immovable properties, including some located abroad in countries like the UAE.

The quantification and valuation of these assets is currently underway. The properties acquired or created from the funds generated out of money laundering are categorised as proceeds of crime, and they are attached so that the persons who indulged in this crime are not able to enjoy the fruits of such a criminal act, the sources said.

After issuing the attachment order, it will be sent to the Adjudicating Authority under the PMLA for confirmation, and once approved, a chargesheet will be filed in a designated court for confiscating these assets, they added.

The ED, over the last few weeks, questioned cricketers like Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Robin Uthappa, and Shikhar Dhawan, apart from actors Sonu Sood, Mimi Chakraborty (a former TMC MP), and Ankush Hazra (Bengali cinema), as part of this investigation.

Some online influencers were also questioned. The agency recorded the statements of these celebrities under Section 50 of the PMLA. The sources said a number of them furnished the statement of accounts and transactions, through which they allegedly received their endorsement fee from the online platform, to the investigating officer of the case.

Statements of a few more sportspersons and actors are to be recorded by the agency in this case. Actor Urvashi Rautela, the “India ambassador for 1xBet”, was summoned, but she did not depose as she was stated to be abroad by the sources.

According to Curacao-registered 1xBet, it is a globally recognised bookmaker with 18 years in the betting industry. Customers can place bets on thousands of sporting events, with the company’s website and app available in 70 languages, according to the company’s information available on its website.

1xBet has not responded to an email sent by PTI for a response on the ED investigation. The Union government recently banned real money online gaming in India by bringing legislation.

According to estimates by market analysis firms and probe agencies undertaken before the government ban, there were about 22 crore Indian users in various such online betting apps, out of which half were regular users.

Officials have earlier said that the line of questioning for these celebrities, who deposed before it recently, included specific queries like how were they contacted by the betting company seeking their endorsement, the nodal person(s) for contact in India, the mode of payment (cash through hawala or banking channel) and place of the payment (in India or abroad), etc.

The agency, while recording the statements of the cricketers and actors, is also understood to be asking them if they knew that online betting and gaming were illegal in India. It has also asked them to furnish a copy of their contracts and all relevant email and paper documentation made by them with 1xBet.