India, Feb. 24 -- The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has carried out searches in Delhi, Jaipur and Mumbai in a cryptocurrency fraud, in which an Indian national - Chirag Tomar, 31, has been sentenced to serve five years in prison in the US, the agency said on Monday.

A US district judge in Charlotte (North Carolina), in October 2024 sentenced Tomar for stealing more than $20 million from hundreds of victims through the use of fake or spoofed websites that mimicked cryptocurrency exchange website Coinbase.

Tomar, according to the US attorney's office statement in October 2024, used the victims' funds to pay for his lavish lifestyle, including purchase of rare watches such as Audemars Piguet and luxury vehicles such as Lamborghinis and Pors...