Rajkot Trio Alleges ₹45 Lakh Crypto Fraud, Says They Were Threatened at Gunpoint
A businessman from Rajkot has accused a relative of cheating him and his two friends out of more than ₹45 lakh through a cryptocurrency investment scheme that later turned into a frightening ordeal involving alleged threats and intimidation.
According to the complaint filed with the Junagadh City B Division police, Vanraj alias Pintu Khakhdiya claimed that his relative, Gautam Suresh, convinced him to invest in USDT cryptocurrency by promising attractive returns. Trusting him, Khakhdiya and his friends — Keval Parmar and Jitendra Divraniya — reportedly handed over ₹45.55 lakh through a courier service.
Police said Gautam allegedly disappeared soon after receiving the money and switched off his phone. When the trio later managed to contact him, he reportedly admitted he could not return the money immediately and instead offered his car, valued at around ₹22.5 lakh, as partial compensation. A vehicle transfer agreement was also reportedly prepared.
However, the situation allegedly took a serious turn when the three men travelled to Visavadar to complete the vehicle transfer process. The complainants alleged that Gautam and his uncle, Jayraj Devku, stopped them near the Visavadar court area and detained them inside a shop.
The FIR further claims that Jayraj threatened the victims with a firearm and warned them not to demand their money back. The trio also alleged they were pressured into cancelling the vehicle transfer papers and forced to sign blank stamp papers.
The accused allegedly warned them against approaching the police and threatened to trap them in false legal cases if they pursued the matter further.
Police have registered a case under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita related to cheating, criminal intimidation and other offences. An investigation is currently underway.
News source: Information for this article was gathered from a variety of reliable news outlets.
