New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has extradited the alleged kingpin in the Rs 6,000-crore Mahadev online betting app case, Sourabh Chandrakar, from Oman, officials said Sunday.
A CBI team deputed to Oman has escorted Chandrakar back to India. He will now be produced before a special court in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, Monday, they said.
Chandrakar was wanted in two CBI cases and one Enforcement Directorate (ED) case in which chargesheets have already been filed, a CBI spokesperson said in a statement.
Based on the Red Corner Notice issued against Sourabh Chandrakar, he was located and detained by the Royal Oman Police, the official said.
Following the information received from Muscat, the CBI and the ED immediately sent formal extradition proposals to the Sultanate of Oman, along with all the evidence gathered against the accused.
The extradition request was pursued in close coordination with the agencies of the Government of India and the Interpol National Central Bureau, and with the support of the competent authorities of the Sultanate of Oman, the spokesperson said.
This extradition marks a significant milestone in India’s sustained efforts to bring back fugitives who operate transnational criminal enterprises against Indian citizens from abroad, and to make them face the due process of Indian law, the official said.
The agency had taken up these Mahadev Online Book cases on a Chhattisgarh government request.
Investigations revealed that Mahadev Online Book was one of the largest illegal online betting syndicates in the country, run from outside India. It offered illegal betting on cricket, football, card games and other events through a network of franchised panels and branches spread across India, which enrolled users and collected stakes from them, the spokesperson said.
The agency alleged that the illicit money generated from illegal betting was routed through a large number of mule bank accounts, layered through multiple transactions and moved abroad through hawala channels.
Investigations further revealed that part of the proceeds was used to pay protection money to public servants so that the syndicate could operate without any hindrance, the spokesperson said.
The CBI registered cases under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the ED registered cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, they said.
Sourabh Chandrakar is among the key accused named in these chargesheets. The ED had attached several properties in India and abroad pertaining to this syndicate, the CBI said.
