ED Arrests 2 Under PMLA for Illegal Gaming Activities

Hardeep Singh and Ankur @Rahul Khanna, both of Kolkata, have been detained under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, for allegedly operating unions on the “PP Poker Online Gaming App” and putting illegal wagers and gambling on it. On April 8, 2022, the accused Hardeep Singh and Ankur @ Rahul Khanna appeared before the Special Court, PMLA, Mapusa, and the court granted them ED custody for eight days.

On the basis of a FIR filed by Goa Police under various sections of the IPC, Sections 3 and 4 of the Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act, 1976, and Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act, 2000 for illegal gaming activities and syphoning large sums of money through secret networks, the ED launched a money laundering investigation.

According to the ED investigation, Hardeep Singh and Rahul Khanna are running 2-3 Unions on the PP Poker Online Gaming App, including Checkraise, Mini-India, Russian Poker, and others. Around 25 to 30 clubs are run by different individuals under each union. Individual players are solicited to join these clubs via WhatsApp chats in order to place unlawful bets on various poker gaming applications such as PP Poker. Commissions ranging from 5% to 10% were produced by the stated clubs on each table running in the said Clubs/Unions, it was discovered. The commission and betting amount are generally settled in cash or cryptocurrency with each individual player and union head by their respective club managers through hawala operators.

On April 6, 2022, the ED conducted searches at the homes of Hardeep Singh and Rahul Khanna, as well as other club managers/agents in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Goa.

Further investigation is in progress.