NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a charge sheet against 30 accused persons, including two Chinese nationals, in connection with the multi-crore HPZ Token investment fraud, a sophisticated cybercrime network that allegedly cheated thousands of Indians during the Covid-19 lockdown period.
According to the agency, the fraud was executed through “a fake mobile application titled ‘HPZ Tokens’, claiming that investments would be used for cryptocurrency mining and would yield very high returns.” Within three months, the app drew in crores of rupees, all of which were allegedly siphoned off by the operators to shell companies controlled by foreign entities.
The charge sheet names Chinese nationals Wan Jun and Li Anming as key figures who directed and coordinated the operation. CBI said that Wan Jun was the director of Jilian Consultants India Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of a Chinese parent entity, and played a central role in setting up multiple shell companies, including Shigoo Technologies Pvt. Ltd., which ran the HPZ scheme.