The Special probe Team (SIT) is stepping up its attempts to uncover the truth behind the alleged theft of public monies and cryptocurrency payments to state officials in a fresh update to the ongoing probe into the Bengaluru Bitcoin fraud. The hacker’s release on bail is still in doubt while the investigation is ongoing and is awaiting a drug abuse assessment. The public’s interest in this case, which has been the subject of political debate and arrests, according to Indian Express, continues to grow.

Update on the Bengaluru Bitcoin Scam investigation

The unrelenting probe into the Bengaluru Bitcoin scam by the SIT of the Karnataka CID has reached a turning point. Srikrishna Ramesh, better known as Sriki, and his friends are central to this case and are accused of stealing government cash and producing bitcoin.

The crypto controversy, meanwhile, first surfaced in November 2020 when Sriki’s Bitcoin cache was discovered by the Bengaluru police’s Central Crime Branch (CCB). Sriki was initially threatened with arrest for using cryptocurrencies to buy drugs on the dark web. However, his case quickly grew to include alleged hacking actions against bitcoin exchanges, government networks, and online poker sites.

Sriki’s role in the hacking of the Karnataka government’s e-procurement cell was made public after his detention in the drug case. Notably, the incident reportedly led to the theft of a stunning Rs 11.5 crore.

The Current Disputation

The most recent twists in this continuing tale have raised the stakes. The SIT is actively pursuing the termination of Sriki’s bail in the meantime, while also conducting searches and making arrests of others who were involved in the first inquiry in 2020 and 2021.But the court’s decision to wait for a doctor to assess Sriki’s drug addiction issues has prolonged the proceedings even more.

Notably, Sridhar Poojar, one of the initial investigators, has filed a petition with the high court to contest the SIT’s registration of a case alleging tampering with devices that were taken from the hacker and his friends in 2020. In order to allow for further investigation, the high court has ordered the SIT to hold off taking any action against Poojar until October 9.

The SIT detained three people connected to the cyber gang’s money-laundering plan earlier this week, providing information on the transfer of the Rs 11.5 crore taken from the Karnataka e-procurement platform in July 2019. They were previously accused of laundering these funds by the ED, and a sizeable quantity has already been confiscated.

However, the hacker and his associates have filed a petition with the Karnataka High Court asking for the e-procurement cell hacking case to be dismissed. They contend that the inquiry was handled by a police inspector rather than the officers from the designated CID cybercrime station. The case continues to be in the public eye, generating a lot of interest and speculative thinking while the SIT relentlessly pursues the truth.