Actress Tamannaah Bhatia is in trouble after she was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) Guwahati on Thursday in connection with a money laundering probe. The investigation pertains to the HPZ Token mobile app, which has allegedly defrauded several investors under the guise of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency mining.
According to sources cited by PTI, the Stree 2 actress received payment for a ‘celebrity appearance’ at an event related to the HPZ token app, which is currently being investigated for money laundering activities. The report states that no ‘incriminating’ allegations have been made against Tamannaah Bhatia. He was called earlier, but due to work commitments he postponed his appearance and ultimately decided to appear on Thursday.
A total of 299 entities have been named as accused in the chargesheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in March, including 76 entities controlled by Chinese interests. Of these, 10 directors are of Chinese origin, while two entities are managed by foreign nationals from other countries.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is conducting a money laundering investigation based on an FIR lodged against several persons associated with the app. They are accused of duping gullible investors by promising huge returns through mining Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
According to the report, the police revealed that the accused had used the HPZ Token mobile application to defraud investors. They opened bank accounts and merchant IDs linked to the app through shell companies run by dummy directors to conceal their illegal activities.
The FIR alleged that these funds were fraudulently obtained for investment in illegal online gaming, betting and bitcoin mining.
Tamannaah Bhatia gave her statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) at the ED zonal office in Guwahati, according to a statement from the agency.
Meanwhile, on the professional front, Tamannaah Bhatia was last seen in Nikkhil Advani directed film Veda, where she starred alongside John Abraham, Sharvari Wagh, Abhishek Banerjee and Kshitij Chauhan.
Additionally, he made a cameo in Stree 2, which also starred Shraddha Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao along with Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana and Abhishek Banerjee in lead roles. The film was directed by Amar Kaushik and produced by Dinesh Vijan and Jyoti Deshpande.
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