Indian Bitcoin Extortion Case: 14 Sentenced to Life Imprisonment, Including 11 Police Officers

BlockBeats News, August 31st, according to TheBlock, in the 2018 India kidnapping ransom case, a Surat businessman was abducted and forced to sell Bitcoin as ransom. In the end, fourteen people were sentenced to life imprisonment, including 11 police officers, including the former police inspector of the scene and a former member of the Indian Legislative Assembly. A special judge sentenced these individuals for the crimes of kidnapping, extortion, and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code.

In the case, the victim Shailesh Bhatt was lured to a gas station and kidnapped, and was later forced to pay 34 bitcoins (about $150,000) as ransom. During the trial of the case, a total of 172 witnesses were summoned, but 92 of them changed their testimonies. It is worth mentioning that the victim Bhatt himself is currently being prosecuted by law enforcement for allegedly kidnapping a BitConnect promoter, and the case is still under trial.