New Delhi, Jan 29 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday claimed that Karnataka Congress MLA K C Veerendra and his associates are the “masterminds” of a nationwide “illegal” online betting network, and it attached fresh assets worth Rs 177 crore as part of the money laundering investigation.
The federal probe agency said in a statement that it has issued a provisional order under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to attach agricultural and residential plots along with some movable assets. It, however, did not specify to whom these properties belonged.
The 51-year-old legislator from the Chitradurga assembly seat of the state was arrested in August 2025 by the ED from Sikkim where he had gone on a business trip to lease a casino. He is now out on bail.
The ED had called him the “prime accused” in the case.
The money laundering probe stems from FIRs filed in multiple states alleging cheating, impersonation and extortion of the public through illegal online betting websites, including King567 and other associated platforms.
“Subsequent findings have uncovered that K C Veerendra and his associates are the masterminds behind a nationwide illegal online betting network operating through the same modus operandi,” the ED alleged.
The Union government had issued an order last year to ban online real-money gaming in India.
The agency added that players were “induced” to stake money on “rigged” illegal gaming websites which were in the nature of online casinos and their (players’) deposits (running into crores of rupees) were collected via payment gateways into designated aggregator accounts.
The victims were initially shown “fake” winnings to build trust and then eventually blocked from withdrawals. Investigation shows usage of hundreds of mule accounts and several payment gateways for laundering of the proceeds of crime, the ED said.
The agency has undertaken the action of attaching assets in this case earlier too. With Thursday’s action, the total value of properties frozen in this case stands at Rs 320 crore.
The ED has also filed a chargesheet in the case with the agency adding that the investigation was “ongoing” to trace the remaining proceeds of crime and to identify all beneficiaries involved. PTI NES KSS KSS
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