Hacker Sriki Accused Of Stealing 60.6 Bitcoins Worth INR 1 Cr, Arrested

The Karnataka Police has arrested hacker Srikrishna alias Sriki in connection with a 2017 Bitcoin case registered in Tumakuru district.

Sriki was arrested on charges of stealing 60.6 Bitcoins worth INR 1.14 Cr from Tumakuru-based cryptocurrency exchange website in 2017.

He was held on Monday (May 6) night from a hotel in Bengaluru’s Ganganagar area. 

Sriki, who was formerly a software programmer, is known in the circuit for being involved in multiple such cybercrime cases, including hacking into Indian poker and online gaming websites, Business Standard reported citing a police statement.

Back in 2017, Unocoin Technologies platform’s director Harish BV lodged a complaint with the Tumakuru New Extension police station after the incident.

Sriki was also earlier arrested by the Central Crime Branch in 2020, in connection with a drug case. He was suspected of procuring drugs through the DarkNet. 

Later, while being under police custody, between 2020-21 he was also accused of moving Bitcoins worth INR 10 Cr to different wallets using a laptop that was smuggled into the prison. Back then, a constable was allegedly bribed for letting the laptop move into the prison to conduct the crime.  

Interestingly, four former CCB officials were also named as accused in the case for seeking Sriki’s help to hack various crypto wallets, payment gateways and stock exchange websites. Last year, the newly elected government of Karnataka formed an SIT to further investigate the matter. 

The relatively new Indian cryptocurrency ecosystem is under strict scrutiny by the government and the Reserve Bank of India. Earlier this year, RBI governor Shaktikanta Das said that digital currencies pose huge risks for emerging economies.

He further added that no matter the growth potential of the ecosystem and significant achievements by several crypto-related startups, RBI’s position in the matter will continue to be the same. 

Citing such regulatory actions and approach of India towards cryptocurrency, OKX recently notified its Indian users that it will be suspending its services in the country. The exchange instructed its Indian users to close all margin positions, as well as positions in perpetual, futures, and options, and to withdraw all funds by April 30, 2024, 12 AM UTC.