Nagpur: The Nagpur Police have busted a sophisticated multi-level digital coin scam involving fraudulent ‘Free Coin’ and ‘Merchant Coin’ schemes that duped thousands of gullible investors from across the country of over Rs15 crore.Police said two prime accused – Mehul Dixit from Nagpur and scam mastermind Chandigarh-based firm owner Rakesh Garg alias Rakesh Agarwal – have been arrested while over Rs2 crore across multiple bank accounts have also frozen, preventing further losses to investors.Dixit has claimed to have 16 degrees and entry in a world book of records, but cops are verifying his claim.On June 13 this year, the case was registered at Pachpaoli police station by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) and cyber cell under relevant sections of IT Act and Maharashtra Protection of Interests of Depositors Act. The fraud centred around a multi-level digital company – registered in 2022 in Mohali in Punjab – promising massive returns through a ‘Future Digital Assets’ (FDA) app, police said.According to investigators, Dixit’s wife Kajal worked at the complainant’s residence and it was she who informed her about the ‘investment scheme’ in October 2025. The victim was later taken to Dixit’s office at Indora Chowk, where she was persuaded to join the scheme. Under the ‘Free Coin’ model, users were promised Rs12,500 in their wallet after 100 days. However, withdrawal was conditional on recruiting 25 new members at Rs5,000 each, forming a multi-level chain allegedly guaranteeing monthly earnings of Rs1 lakh from the second month.Police said the victim recruited 25 individuals and transferred funds to the company. Separately, Dixit also promoted a ‘Merchant Coin’, falsely claiming its value would skyrocket from Rs2,200 to Rs12 lakh.In total, the woman invested Rs2.25 lakh and saw her digital wallet value inflated to Rs5.45 lakh. However, withdrawals were blocked under the pretext of company rules limiting payouts to Rs10,000 per month. Repeated assurances of refunds continued as Garg, as company owner, allegedly offered false promises.Police estimate that over 10 lakh users had signed up nationwide. Within 12 hours of registering the FIR, authorities managed to stop 603 new users from joining.Five bank accounts and fixed deposits worth Rs2.10 crore have been frozen, police said. Seized items include four laptops, a mobile phone, and Rs450 in cash.Dixit was arrested in Nagpur on June 13, while Garg was nabbed in Chandigarh on June 15 while en route to a seminar. Both are currently in custody. Police believe the operation involved app developers, designers, and logistics personnel.Gurvinder Singh, an acquaintance of the victim, said, “The victim is a single parent and had planned to invest the money for her children. She even mortgaged her jewellery to arrange the funds to invest. Initially, she was told that she would receive the money in December, but later the deadline was shifted to March.”“While seeking investments, it was “assured” to the investors that they would be allowed to withdraw all the money in the digital wallet and would be required to maintain a minimum balance of Rs4,000 in it,” said Singh. However, the money could never be withdrawn and it all turned out to be a scam.A forensic audit confirmed that ‘Merchant Coin’ had no legitimate banking linkage or redemption value on any e-commerce platform.Nagpur commissioner of police Ravinder Singal described it as a large-scale multi-level fraud with the potential to cause massive financial damage. “We cannot rule out foreign investors. The accused also used fake AI-generated images of IPS and IAS officers, leading to additional charges of impersonation,” he said. “We are in the process to block access to the website promoting the scheme,” he said.DCP (Crime & Cyber) Deepak Aggarwal noted that the coins had no real backing, while joint CP Navinchandra Reddy and other officers were part of the investigation led by EOW and cyber teams, including senior inspector Sudhir Borkute.Further investigation is underway to trace the full financial trail. Police have urged citizens to remain cautious of digital investment schemes promising guaranteed returns.
