New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested a Delhi-based man, Rohit Vij, in connection with a money laundering case linked to a fraudulent Chinese-controlled investment app scam involving over ₹900 crore, officials said on Friday.
Vij was taken into custody on June 30, following search operations at his premises in the national capital, according to an official ED statement.
The case originates from a 2022 FIR by Hyderabad Police’s Cybercrime Station, which alleged that Chinese nationals, in collaboration with Indian counterparts, operated a fake investment platform named ‘LOXAM’, falsely claiming links to a reputed French multinational corporation. The app lured investors with unrealistically high returns.
Investigations revealed that fraudulently obtained funds were funneled into Xindai Technologies Pvt. Ltd., a shell company set up in the name of an Indian citizen under the guidance of a Chinese national known as “Jack”. The ED found that Jack acquired internet banking credentials and routed the money through 38 mule accounts.
The tainted proceeds were later converted into foreign currencies, including US dollars and dirhams, using Delhi-based money changers such as Ranjan Money Corp. Pvt. Ltd. and KDS Forex Pvt. Ltd., allegedly controlled by Vij and his associates. The funds were transferred to Chinese handlers through hawala networks.
The ED stated that ₹171.47 crore was directly laundered via Xindai Technologies and subsequently moved abroad through the money changers. However, an in-depth analysis of bank records indicated that within seven months, Ranjan Money Corp. and KDS Forex, both under Vij’s control, processed ₹903 crore of illicit funds generated by the Chinese perpetrators and their Indian collaborators.
Further investigations are ongoing to identify other individuals and entities involved in this transnational financial fraud.
