Terrorists use Bitcoin for terror funding in J&K

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir State Intelligence Agency (SIA) on Wednesday said that the insurgent groups are fueling money through Bitcoin in the region, in the wake of which the agency carried out raids in several areas of the union territory.

The Jammu and Kashmir State Intelligence Agency (SIA) on Wednesday searched houses of seven persons in three districts of the erstwhile state amid inputs that insurgents are fueling money through Bitcoin to fund terror in the region.

“House premises of suspects in Mendhar Poonch, Baramulla, Kupwara were searched in connection with investigation of case FIR No.12/22 U/S 18, 38, 39 UA (P) Act, 120-B, 121,121-A IPC registered in Counter Intelligence Police Station in Srinagar,” police said in a statement.

During searches conducted today, the police said, incriminating material “believed to be hidden in digital devices, SIM cards, Mobile Phones and documents, having a bearing on the investigation have been recovered and seized.”

“Preliminary investigation revealed evidence that the dirty money originating from Pakistan has reached these persons”, said the police. The Pakistani mastermind has been “comprehensively identified”, claimed the police.

“While several accounts-in-the-middle that have been used to layer the money are outside J&K, the effective whitewashing of the Pakistani money has taken place through the exploitation of loopholes in the international bitcoin trade,” the statement added.

Newsclick reported that the SIA was established in November 2021 “for specialised investigation” into cases related to terror that is not referred to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Since then, the agency has been continuously carrying out raids in the region as part of the crackdown against those believed to be aiding militancy.

Earlier, mitigating the risk of money laundering and terror funding, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in April had made a strong case for regulating cryprocurrencies at a global level. “I harp on that very much because I think the biggest risk for all countries across the board will be on the money laundering aspect, and also on the aspect of currency being used for financing terror,” she reported to have said.

– INDIA NEWS STREAM