Bengaluru techie arrested in Rs 379-crore CoinDCX crypto heist, police reveal probe details

A Bengaluru-based software engineer is at the centre of a major cryptocurrency heist investigation after police made a breakthrough in the Rs 379-crore theft from crypto exchange CoinDCX, according to a TOI report.

Rahul Agarwal, 30, a resident of Carmelaram and originally from Haridwar, Uttarakhand, was arrested by the Whitefield CEN crime police on July 26. Agarwal’s arrest follows a formal complaint by Neblio Technologies, the parent company of CoinDCX, after hackers exploited confidential financial protocols using Agarwal’s login credentials.

TOI reported that the case surfaced when Neblio Technologies’ vice-president for public policy, Hardeep Singh, informed police of unusual activity on the company’s platform. An unknown person hacked into the CoinDCX system at 2.37 am on July 19 and transferred one USDT to a crypto wallet. The breach escalated a few hours later, with around $44 million (Rs 379 crore) siphoned off to six different wallets.

An internal probe by the company revealed that only the security credentials of Agarwal’s office laptop had been compromised, giving the hacker access to CoinDCX’s servers. Agarwal’s device was subsequently seized. During police questioning, Agarwal denied any involvement in the theft but admitted to engaging in ‘moonlighting’ - undertaking freelance gigs for three to four separate private clients, whose credentials he said he did not know.

The TOI report details how the internal investigation further uncovered a Rs 15 lakh deposit of unknown origin in Agarwal’s bank account. Police sources said Agarwal told them he had received a WhatsApp call from a German number instructing him to work on files sent for completion.

Agarwal stated to police, as cited by TOI, that “one of the files could have been a bait and the hacker could have entered into his official system,” maintaining he was unaware of the theft until summoned by his employer.