Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Around USD 13 crore which is approximately Rs 1000 crore in Indian currency has been cheated from foreign citizens through the advisory centre racket operating in India, according to a report by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
This information was shared by prosecution with Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court as the court took up a bail application of Mehul Patil, an accused in an advisory centre racket busted in Indore, for hearing. Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla rejected the bail application. This is for the fourth time that Patil’s bail application was rejected in the last two years.
The raid was conducted on a call centre and it was found that a racket was being operated by which the accused persons used to call US citizens and blackmail them by saying that they were involved in criminal cases and that their social security would be cancelled and their numbers would be shared with the authorities if they did not pay up.
Patil was booked for offences punishable under Section(s) 419, 420, 467, 468, 471, 120B, and 34 of IPC in June 2020.
The government advocate Vishal Sanothiya informed the court that there a similar case filed in 2018 is pending against the applicant and that he is a habitual offender.
The court was informed that the accused had taken a huge amount in dollars. “The applicant used to convert the foreign currency into Indian currency along with co-accused Karan Bhati and main accused Ravi Rami,” the court was informed.
After hearing counsel for the parties and taking into consideration the role attributed to the present applicant - he made 287 calls to recently arrested co-accused Karan Bhati and the main accused Ravi Rami who is yet to be arrested - the court observed that the foreign citizens have been cheated of about Rs 1000 crore involved in the present case.
“Apart from that, there is one similar case against the applicant. The earlier bail application was also dismissed on merit and there is no change in circumstances, therefore, I do not find any case for grant of bail,” the judge said.
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