New Delhi, Nov 1 — The CBI, in coordination with other Central agencies, has successfully secured the extradition of Sourabh Chandrakar, the promoter of the Mahadev App illegal betting syndicate, from the Sultanate of Oman, an official said on Sunday.
A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team specially deputed to Oman escorted him back to India, the official said.
Chandrakar will now be produced before the CBI Special Court in Raipur on Monday, the CBI said in a statement.
He is wanted in two CBI cases in which chargesheets have already been filed and an ED case in which a separate chargesheet has been filed.
Based on the Red Corner Notice, Sourabh Chandrakar was located and detained by the Royal Oman Police. The CBI and the ED immediately sent formal Extradition Proposals to the Sultanate of Oman, along with all the evidence gathered against the accused, the agency said.
The extradition marks a significant milestone in India's sustained efforts to bring back fugitives who operate transnational criminal enterprises against Indian citizens from abroad, and to make them face the due process of Indian law, the CBI said.
The CBI took up the investigation of the Mahadev Online Book cases at the request of the Government of Chhattisgarh. Investigation revealed that the Mahadev Online Book was one of the largest illegal online betting syndicates in the country, run from outside India, said the statement.
The Mahadev Online Book offered illegal betting on cricket, football, card games and other events through a network of franchised "panels" and "branches" spread across India, which enrolled users and collected stakes from them, it said.
The proceeds of the illegal betting were routed through a large number of mule bank accounts, layered through multiple transactions and moved abroad through hawala channels, it said.
Investigation further revealed that part of the proceeds was used to pay protection money to public servants so that the syndicate could operate without hindrance, the CBI said.
The CBI has filed the chargesheets under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and provisions of the Indian Penal Code relating to criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery, and the Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act.