ED raids Raj Kundra's premises in porn-linked money laundering case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Nov 29 conducted raids at 15 premises, including that of businessman and Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty’s husband Raj Kundra.

The places including some houses and offices in Mumbai and Uttar Pradesh were raided by the ED sleuths in connection with the pornography case against Kundra, sources were quoted as saying.

The search operations are reportedly linked to a money-laundering investigation about the allegations surrounding the production and distribution of pornographic content through mobile applications.

The ED's inquiry stems from a case initiated by the Mumbai police against Kundra in 2021 in connection with the alleged porn production.

Police made the first arrests in the alleged porn racket case in February 2021. Before this, the Mumbai Police Crime Branch conducted raids at a bungalow in Madh Island where porn movies were allegedly being shot.

Kundra was arrested in July 2021 after investigations revealed that he was a key conspirator in the case. The pornographic content produced was being distributed over subscription-based mobile apps like HotHit Movies and Hotshots.

The Hotshots app was developed by Armsprime Media Private Limited, a firm founded by Kundra in 2019. Armsprime later sold Hotshots to Kenrin Limited, a UK-based firm owned by Kundra’s brother-in-law Pradeep Bakshi, according to media reports.

The Mumbai police have filed a chargesheet against Kundra and three other accused linked to the case. In 2021, Kundra remained in Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail for two months and was granted bail in September.

The ED is looking into major overseas transactions in this connection. The probe agency is already investigating a money laundering case against Kundra over a Bitcoin scheme.

In April 2024, the agency provisionally attached immovable and movable properties worth Rs 97.79 crore belonging to Kundra, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the Bitcoin investment fraud case.

The agency said the attached properties include a residential flat in Mumbai’s upscale Juhu area, which is currently in the name of Shilpa Shetty, a residential bungalow situated in Pune, and equity shares in Kundra’s name.

The ED filed the Bitcoin money laundering case against Kundra based on multiple FIRs registered by the police in Maharashtra and Delhi against Variable Tech Pvt Ltd, Amit Bhardwaj (deceased), Ajay Bhardwaj, Vivek Bhardwaj, Simpy Bhardwaj, Mahender Bhardwaj, and several multiple-level marketing (MLM) agents.

According to FIRs, the accused had collected huge funds in the form of Bitcoins – reportedly worth Rs 6,600 crore in 2017 — from people with false promises of a 10 % monthly return in the form of Bitcoins.

According to ED, the collected Bitcoins were supposed to be utilized for Bitcoin mining, and investors were supposed to get huge returns in crypto assets.

“But the promoters cheated the investors and have been concealing the ill-gotten Bitcoins in obscure online wallets,” the ED stated earlier.