The UAE authorities informed their Indian counterparts about Lakhanpal’s arrest on September 1, said officials familiar with the case’s developments

Published on: Sep 10, 2026, 08:00:10 IST

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MUMBAI: Amit M Lakhanpal, a key accused in a ₹113.10-crore crypto-based investment fraud case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Maharashtra police, has been arrested in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) based on a pending Interpol Red Corner Notice issued against him. Agency sources said efforts were underway to seek his return to India via extradition.

The UAE authorities informed their Indian counterparts about Lakhanpal’s arrest on September 1, said officials familiar with the case’s developments. The ED investigation had revealed that Lakhanpal, along with a few other accomplices, had fled India by acquiring a passport of the Caribbean country Antigua and Barbuda, and was later traced to Dubai, UAE, where he was living under a fake identity. had reported this development on August 21.

Officials said that efforts were underway to secure Lakhanpal’s return through a formal extradition request to the UAE authorities via diplomatic channels. India’s extradition treaty with the UAE has been in force since 1999.

The ED money-laundering probe is based on a case registered by the Thane city police against several accused, including Lakhanpal, T H Qazi, S V Shelar, and K B Shirsath. The Red Corner Notice was issued against Lakhanpal on the Thane police’s request.

Lakhanpal and his accomplices are accused of creating an unrecognised cryptocurrency, ‘Money Trade Coin’ (MTC), and fraudulently inducing a large number of people to invest in it from August 2017 to April 2018. The funds were allegedly collected without requisite approvals from the government or the Reserve Bank of India.

Last May, the Central Bureau of Investigation said that Interpol had issued a ‘silver notice’ against Lakhanpal, which enables member countries to share alerts and requests for information on assets of wanted criminals.

Earlier, on August 12, the ED’s Mumbai zonal unit’s team had carried out searches at several locations in Mumbai and Thane in the case, seizing ₹1 crore cash, incriminating documents and digital devices.

The seized documents allegedly revealed that the accused persons had conducted several seminars in Delhi, Pune and Nashik as part of a promotional campaign for the cryptocurrency. Lakhanpal had allegedly falsely portrayed himself as a finance ministry official at the seminars, promised substantial returns on investment in ‘MTC coin’ and also claimed that the central government would recognise it soon.

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