Surat: Donations collected at a yoga centre in Surat were allegedly diverted to fund a counterfeit currency racket, with the main accused travelling to China to procure a high-tech printer used for printing fake notes, the Crime Branch said during the ongoing investigation.

According to officials, Pradeep Jotangiya, who ran Satyam Yog Centre in Surat, is suspected to have used money received as donations to finance the illegal operation. The Crime Branch has found that Jotangiya travelled to China in February 2026, where he allegedly contacted a Chinese agent and arranged for the purchase of a specialised printer later used to print Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN).

Investigators have obtained bank statements of Jotangiya’s personal account as well as the yoga centre’s account from 2020 onwards to track the flow of funds. “We have procured bank statements from both accounts from 2020 till date to determine how much donation the yoga centre received and how much amount was withdrawn by the accused,” a Crime Branch official said.

Police said the printer was shipped from China to Gujarat, and officials are now examining shipment records to identify the sender and the intended recipient in Ahmedabad. The accused have not disclosed who was supposed to receive the consignment, officials added.

The investigation has also expanded to digital evidence. Apart from Call Detail Records (CDR), the Crime Branch is analysing Internet Protocol Detail Records (IPDR) to trace online communication and transactions. Officials are also verifying the online portals used to order pre-embedded security paper and have sought CCTV footage related to the shipment to establish how the material entered the country after being declared as stationery.

The Crime Branch suspects that counterfeit notes worth around ₹2.5 crore to ₹3 crore were printed over a period of about three months. During searches, police seized laptops, colour printers, cartridges, paper cutters, imported security paper and partially printed notes.

Sources in the Crime Branch said the accused had already circulated some fake currency in Surat on a trial basis before the racket was busted. DeshGujarat