Actor Sahil Khan, previously questioned by the Mumbai Police’s Crime Branch in connection with the Mahadev betting app case, has been declared absconding, according to police officials on Friday reported Free Press Journal.

Although he was granted interim protection by the Bombay High Court recently, following the rejection of his pre-arrest plea by the session court, Khan’s status changed after he appeared before the Mumbai Police last Saturday. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) questioned him for over three hours during the interrogation.

He was initially summoned in December 2023, but Khan had been avoiding arrest by seeking anticipatory bail from the courts. He also approached the Bombay HC seeking the quashing of the FIR.

However, two days ago, the Bombay High Court dismissed his plea, instructing him to cooperate with the police for interrogation. Subsequently, a team from the Crime Branch visited Khan’s residence on Friday and discovered that he was missing. Despite multiple attempts to locate him, Khan could not be found, leading the authorities to declare him absconding.

While Sahil Khan’s specific role in the case is yet to be determined, police officials allege that he promoted advertisements encouraging citizens to use the betting app, which led him to profit significantly. The court took note of this while rejecting his pleas.

Last year, the Enforcement Directorate and the Matunga Police registered cases related to the Mahadev betting app and its promoters. The FIR included allegations of hawala transactions, money laundering through cryptocurrency, and match-fixing. Mumbai-based social worker Prakash Bankar, in the FIR, stated that people had been defrauded of more than Rs. 15,000 crores through the betting app. Many high-profile names like politicians and celebrities have come under the ED scanner concerning the Mahadev app case.