The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Odisha Police has arrested Chitta Ranjan Mohanty from Gopalpur, Jagatsinghpur, in connection with a massive crypto‑Ponzi scam involving the web platform “Yes World.”
The arrest was made on August 20 in EOW P.S Case No.25/2023 under multiple sections of the IPC, the PCMC Act, the OPID Act, and the IT Act.
The case originated from a complaint by Swagat Kumar Nayak of Puri, who alleged being cheated of Rs 85,000. Investigations revealed that Mohanty, along with associates including Shankar Sarkar and Sandeep Choudhary, ran illegal money circulation schemes disguised as crypto investments. The scam lured investors with promises of high returns through a pyramid structure, adding thousands of “downline” members.
EOW estimates that over 8,000 investors in Odisha and 2.5 lakh members nationwide were duped, with the total money involved exceeding Rs 200 crore. The scheme spread across states including Punjab, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Haryana, Gujarat, Bihar, and Jharkhand.
Mohanty allegedly collected crores from gullible investors, with Rs 19.32 lakh traced directly to his personal accounts. He organised promotional meetings in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, used websites, mobile apps, and WhatsApp groups to display fabricated returns, and actively recruited new members.
Earlier, accused Sandeep Choudhary and Shankar Sarkar were arrested. Two mobile phones belonging to Mohanty have been seized, and further investigation is underway.
