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ED arrests businessman Vikas Garg in Mahadev, Skyexchange probe
The ED launched its probe in 2022 based on FIRs registered by police in Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday arrested businessman Vikas Garg as part of its money laundering investigation into the alleged online illegal betting activities of the Mahadev Online Book (MOB) platform.
The ED had recently attached assets worth around ₹940.77 crore linked to Garg, alleging that the properties were purchased using money laundered through illegal betting operations of MOB and Skyexchange platforms. Garg will be produced in court for remand, ED officials said, confirming the arrest.
ED officials said that the attached assets belonged to Garg, his family members and entities owned or controlled by him. The properties include residential units, land parcels, equity shares and other securities.
According to the agency, proceeds of crime from the alleged betting syndicates were laundered through a multi-layered network of shell entities, accommodation entries and layered financial transactions to disguise the funds as legitimate. Investigators alleged that ₹940.77 crore was routed through entities linked to Garg before being used to acquire shares, securities and other assets.
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The ED launched its probe in 2022 based on FIRs registered by police in Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal against the operators, promoters and associates of the betting platforms for offences including criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery.
The agency claims the MOB is one of the largest illegal betting syndicates unearthed in the country which operated from abroad, including Dubai, through a franchise-based network and generated more than ₹450 crore every month from alleged illegal betting.
So far, the ED has issued seven provisional attachment orders and filed multiple prosecution complaints against several accused, including wanted co-promoters Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal. Chandrakar was detained in Oman last month and is awaiting his extradition to India.
