Cryptocurrency MLM and arrest
5 months ago
My friend Kartik was doing XYZ cryptocurrency marketing. He first registered and invested some amount in the cryptocurrency and became a promoter. then he joined some people under him and got commissions from that joining.
The XYZ cryptocurrency was not listed at that time on the exchanger, so the promotion was based on it being listed in a few months at a higher rate, that's why people showed interest and were ready to invest.
After a few months, the XYZ cryptocurrency was listed on the exchanger with a decided (higher) price but in a few hours, it fell and became just 2-3$ dollars. All lost their money in it, still, we can't withdraw the amount from any exchanger.
People pressured Kartik to get the money back but he didn't keep that money for himself. He genuinely registered people and invested their amount in the system. But if the company was a fraud then what to do?
People did not listen to him and filed a case at the police station under 420 IPC. He is in jail for the last 2 months and bail has been rejected 2 times.
His lawyer says we will try 3rd time based on the chargesheet, but don't know what are the next steps.
How to prove that he is not guilty and not liable to pay anyone as cryptocurrency is not regulated by RBI.
Please help me and provide me with some solution. Thank you.
Incidentally, cryptocurrency/asset trading is neither illegal nor regulated by any specific legislation yet in India. The National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal(NCCRP) is an initiative of the Government of India to facilitate victims/complainants to report cybercrime including cryptocurrency scams or complaints online. However, when one is a victim of scams and frauds while trading in cryptocurrency, is advised that when any suspicious activity is detected in a trader’s exchange wallet, they should contact the customer service of that exchange, and voice their concern with the representatives as a precautionary measure to seek justice in India. So, once a cyber crime involving cryptocurrency trading is reported online to NCCRP, a routine course of investigation is started immediately and you have to wait for the completion of the investigation of the scam by the investigating agency. The length of time it takes to investigate a cybercrime can vary greatly depending on the complexity of the case, the resources available to the investigating agency, and the cooperation of the victim. An act punishable under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code is a non-bailable offense. In this case, bail is the complete discretion of the Court. The person charged with Section 420 IPC can either apply for a pre-arrest bail, i.e. anticipatory bail, or a post-arrest bail, i.e. regular bail. As regards the bail of your friend who is accused of cheating under Sec,420 IPC, a regular bail application can be filed under Section 439 of the Criminal Procedure Code. This is filed when the accused is in jail. Bail is granted considering various factors that the Courts consider while granting bail. It can be filed before the High Court under Sec.482 of Cr PC praying for the quashing of proceedings of the trial court initiated under Sec.420 IPC. Apart, an application for quashing of FIR or proceedings of the trial court can also be filed before the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India by means of a Criminal Miscellaneous Writ Petition invoking the extraordinary jurisdiction of the Court. Sometimes an offense is not committed but just happened. As per the definition of Section 420, IPC states that ingredients of cheating and dishonesty must be present at the time of act. If both ingredients are missing and the act just happened with the Victim, then the person (accused) gets bail. So the main ingredient of committing the offense is Intention, if a person does some wrong act with criminal intention then it’s very difficult for him to get relief in the eyes of the law.
Vidhikarya
In India, cryptocurrency trading is permitted but not considered legal tender for banking purposes. However, a 30% tax is imposed on cryptocurrency transactions. If your friend faces legal issues related to cryptocurrency trading, you could consider hiring a senior advocate or appealing to a higher court to seek bail for them.
You may hire a senior advocate or go to higher court and try to get bail to your friend.