Bengaluru: Rs 55 cr frozen, 5 luxury cars seized in online betting case linked to MLA KC Veerendra

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, September 4, 2025: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has frozen assets worth Rs 55 crore in a major crackdown on an illegal online betting racket linked to Karnataka MLA KC Veerendra. 

The action follows a series of raids across Bengaluru and Challekere on Tuesday, during which officials also seized five luxury vehicles 

During the raids, the agency seized five luxury vehicles, including Mercedes-Benz cars with VIP registration numbers.

Officials said funds worth around Rs 55 crore were marked frozen. This includes Rs 40.69 crore spread across nine bank accounts and one Demat account of Veerendra, as well as Rs 14.46 crore parked in 262 "mule accounts" used for routing betting proceeds. The operations were conducted while Veerendra, the prime accused and an MLA from Chitradurga district, remains in ED custody.

On August 28, the agency had secured a seven-day extension of his custody, after producing evidence linking him to the generation and laundering of proceeds of crime. The case is part of a wider crackdown on illegal betting operations, with the ED earlier conducting searches across 31 premises in Bengaluru, Challekere, Panaji, Gangtok, Jodhpur, Hubli, and Mumbai. Those searches had led to the recovery of Rs 12 crore in cash, gold worth Rs 6 crore, 10 kg of silver, and four vehicles.

According to the probe, Veerendra was operating several betting platforms under names such as King567, Raja567, and Lion567. Investigators estimate that over Rs 2,000 crore was routed through just one payment gateway in a short span. The funds were allegedly laundered through multiple channels, including mule accounts, fintech firms, and hawala networks, often masked as e-commerce transactions.

The ED has also found links to Dubai-based entities run by Veerendra’s brother, KC Thippeswamy, including Diamond Softech, TRS Technologies, and Prime9Technologies. Several other offshore firms are suspected to be part of the network.

Funds collected from players were layered through escrow accounts and third-party service providers before being siphoned abroad, the agency said. Veerendra’s nephew, Pruthvi N Raj alias Appu, is alleged to have coordinated mule accounts used to funnel the betting money.

The agency maintains that the illegal betting syndicate operated a vast network of online platforms and financial gateways to disguise illicit proceeds. Further investigation is underway.