The Enforcement Directorate’s Mumbai office has attached assets worth approximately ₹307.16 crores in its ongoing money laundering investigation into Fairplay, an illegal betting and broadcasting operation with global links. The crackdown includes Dubai real estate and follows a raft of searches, arrests, and seizures that now total over ₹651 crore.
In a sweeping strike against cross-border financial crime, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Mumbai has ordered the provisional attachment of assets valued at a staggering ₹307.16 crore. This action targets Fairplay—a high-profile syndicate accused of running illicit online betting and illegal broadcasting operations, with the money trail extending deep into international real estate markets like Dubai. Movable assets in the form of hefty bank balances, along with luxury villas and flats in the UAE, have been frozen as investigators widen the probe.
Unravelling a Web of International Money Movement
The crackdown stems from an FIR by media company Viacom18, which reported losses over ₹100 crore due to copyright infringement and illegal streaming, triggering a flood of additional complaints and a full-fledged investigation. The ED’s forensic analysis unveiled an intricate money laundering web, involving shell companies allegedly set up by mastermind Krish Laxmichand Shah in Curacao, Dubai, and Malta. Authorities say Shah orchestrated the syndicate’s large-scale betting racket from Dubai, abetted by close associates like Anil Kumar Dadlani, who together stashed funds in both personal and corporate accounts abroad.
Previously, ED’s operations netted significant seizures on multiple occasions across 2024 and early 2025, as well as the arrests of two alleged key operatives, Chintan and Chirag Shah. A prosecution complaint filed in April 2025 is now before a special court, even as the tally of seized assets and attachments has surged to an eye-opening ₹651.31 crore.
As highlighted in the Enforcement Directorate’s official press release, this ongoing operation exemplifies the agency’s resolve to pierce digital crime syndicates, tighten international cooperation, and plug legal loopholes that have let illicit profits flow overseas.
With further investigation underway, this case signals escalating enforcement against tech-driven crime and global financial fraud. The ED’s message is clear: the days of using hospitality havens and shell addresses to launder money may be numbered, as India’s regulators turn up the heat on the modern digital underworld.
As mentioned in the Enforcement Directorate’s press release, authorities are determined to continue pursuing hidden assets and breaking down international crime networks.
