'Code 2' Key To ₹177 Crore Laundering Web: ED Exposes Foreign Masterminds Behind Torres Jewellery Scam

Mumbai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a prosecution complaint under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, against 13 accused in the Rs 177 crore Torres Jewellery scam. The case involves a sophisticated money laundering racket orchestrated by both Indian operatives and foreign nationals, using shell companies, cryptocurrency, and coded messaging platforms.

Filed on May 22, 2025, the chargesheet names key entities and individuals, including M/s Platinum Hern Pvt Ltd (operating under the brand name Torres Jewellery), its directors Alpesh Khara and Sagar Paresh Mehta, foreign nationals Oleksandr Zapichenko alias Alex and his associate Olena Stoian along with Viktoria Kovalenko. The list of accused also includes firms like M/s Astrozen Pharma Pvt Ltd, Prisah Advisory Pvt Ltd, and several co-accused already in custody. The Special PMLA Court is expected to take cognizance of the prosecution complaint shortly.

Mastermind Oleksandr Zapichenko alias Alex and his associate Olena Stoian

ED’s prosecution complaint has unearthed a case that reads like the plot of a crime thriller. ED has cracked open a meticulously run, code-based money laundering operation used by Torres Jewellery (M/s Platinum Hern Pvt Ltd) to siphon off over Rs177 crore. At the center of this web lies a cryptic trigger ‘Code 2.” Behind this digital code was a real-world financial empire built on deception, shell companies, and cryptocurrency directed by foreign nationals and executed on Indian soil.

The accused floated a fraudulent investment scheme by selling synthetic moissanite stones as high-value gems through Torres-branded showrooms across Mumbai, particularly the Dadar branch. Investors were lured with promises of inflated returns, referral bonuses, and aggressive marketing.

But behind the glitzy façade ran a parallel shadow operation of a sophisticated cash collection and laundering system coordinated through an internal portal ‘torsolid.club’ and a Telegram group named ‘Cash Counter 1’. Cash disbursement was authorised exclusively through unique Telegram codes, with the phrase ‘Code 2’ serving as the key trigger.

According to the ED complaint, at the heart of the laundering network was a covert cash disbursement mechanism, activated through a code-based communication system on Telegram. The ED found that the term ‘Code 2’ functioned as a pre-authorised trigger for showroom cashiers, signaling the release of large sums of unaccounted cash from Torres Jewellery’s outlets, particularly its Dadar branch.

The system operated through a now-deleted Telegram group named ‘Cash Counter 1’, where one-time transaction codes, centered around the ‘Code 2’ command, were circulated among trusted employees. These codes were used to validate withdrawals in the company’s internal portal, torsolid.club, specifically under its ‘Encashment’ section.

The investigation revealed that the private domain https://torsolid.club was internally developed by the company for senior cashiers and managerial staff used the platform to log daily encashment transactions. Each disbursal was authenticated using a one-time code sent to recipients via Telegram, identified by investigators as the ‘Code-2’ system

The Telegram group ‘Cash Counter 1’ was used to circulate these one-time codes. Once verified at the showroom, cashiers processed the handover under the ‘encashment’ section of the internal portal. However, the group has since been deleted, hampering the recovery of earlier instructions and digital evidence.

The PC alleged that the entire scam was masterminded by Ukrainian national Oleksandr Zapichenko alias Alex and his associate Olena Stoian, who is also a shareholder in the company. The duo built the fraudulent investment framework and directed daily operations through Indian counterparts, including Sagar Mehta and Aman Khan. These two were responsible for issuing ‘Code 2’ disbursement instructions via WhatsApp and Telegram to showroom staff.

According to ED, Sagar Mehta and Aman Khan were directly responsible for issuing these codes to cashiers via WhatsApp and Telegram, acting as the last-mile link between the masterminds and field operators. Their chats revealed how ‘Code 2’ served as an instructional green light, authorising payouts that were never reported in the company’s official records.

Both the accused supervised the entire operation from behind the scenes from generating illicit cash through fake schemes to converting it into USDT (Tether) cryptocurrency and routing it to proxy wallets abroad. The ED recovered WhatsApp chats where ‘Code 2’ was repeatedly used as a transaction trigger, initiating the handover of lakhs in unaccounted cash from Torres’ Dadar-based showroom. Mehta was responsible for executing the scam on the ground, before fleeing to Dubai on December 28, 2024.

After Mehta’s exit, Alpesh Khara took over the communications. Although he continued the same operations, investigators noted he deliberately avoided using the term ‘Code 2’, likely to mask his involvement. Under instructions from Alex, Khara converted the collected unaccounted cash into USDT and routed the digital funds to wallets controlled by foreign handlers.

While Khara’s own digital wallet showed limited activity, ED officials believe proxy wallets were deployed to obscure the fund flow.

According to ED, ‘Code 2’ wasn’t just a phrase but a shadow command system, enabling real-time laundering across Mumbai through coded language, encrypted apps, and manipulated records. The ED believes this mechanism helped the network launder over Rs177 crore, eventually converted into USDT and routed to foreign-controlled crypto wallets.

Both Alex and Olena fled India just days before the FIR was registered. The ED has seized extensive evidence, including WhatsApp messages, screenshots, portal access logs, and transaction records, substantiating the network’s illicit financial activities.

The central agency is now pursuing international cooperation to trace the funds and apprehend the absconding foreign nationals. Red Corner Notices (RCNs) are being prepared against Alex, Olena, and other accused.

During the investigation under the PMLA, the ED conducted search and seizure operations under Section 17 of the PMLA, 2002, at 32 premises linked to the accused. These actions led to the freezing of Rs21.75 crore in bank accounts of M/s Platinum Hern Pvt Ltd and associates, under Section 17(1-A) of the Act. Additionally, Rs6.30 crore in cash was seized from various hawala operators and Angadias connected to the money laundering activities.

A provisional attachment order was issued on March 7, 2025, attaching assets worth Rs1.75 crore, believed to be proceeds of crime under the Act.