2024-08-05
Thevamanogari Manivel and
Jatinder Singh are a couple who were involved in a legal case with a
cryptocurrency exchange, Crypto.com.
In May 2021, Crypto.com sent a mistaken
refund of AUD 10.5 million (approximately USD 6.7 million) from Crypto.com
instead of the intended AUD 100 refund toThevamanogari Manivel and her partner,
Jatinder Singh.
The error occurred due to a human
mistake in entering details into an Excel spreadsheet when
an employee entered incorrect details into an Excel spreadsheet. The funds
were initially transferred to Manivel's bank account, linked to Singh's
Crypto.com account.
The couple reportedly spent the funds
on luxury items, including four houses, vehicles, gifts, and art. They also
transferred around AUD 4 million to a Malaysian bank account.
Crypto.com discovered the error during
an annual audit in December 2021, legal action was taken to recover the money.
The Victoria Supreme Court ordered the return of the funds and the sale of the
purchased properties.
His former partner, Thevamanogari Manivel, was sentenced last year.
Thevamanogari Manivel faced
charges of theft, negligently dealing with proceeds of crime, and attempting to
flee the country. She was arrested in March 2023 when trying to fly to Malaysia
with around 11,000 AUD. She was granted bail under strict conditions, including
surrendering her passport.
Manivel was sentenced to 209 days in
prison, and placed on an 18-month community corrections order in September last
year
Manivel pleaded guilty to recklessly dealing with the proceeds of crime and was sentenced to an 18-month community corrections order, including six months of unpaid community work. She had already spent 209 days in custody.
Singh spent almost a year on remandamid claims he may attempt to flee the country.
Jatinder Singh faced primary
theft charges for withdrawing the funds from the bank. In the latest court
hearing, Australian prosecutors argued for a prison sentence for Singh, given
the amount of money involved and the actions taken after receiving the funds.
Singh told Manivel to withdraw
the money because he wanted to avoid the transaction being reversed. He would
later claim he honestly believed he’d won an online raffle.
Singh, who faces theft charges, claimed
they believed they had won a contest from Crypto.com. However, Crypto.com
denied the existence of such a competition.
In the latest court hearing on August
2, three years after the incident, Australian prosecutor Campbell Thomson said due
to the amount of money it was considered a crime of opportunity. He stated that
a jail sentence was necessary for Singh.
Singh will be sentencing later this
month.
