The Navghar police have booked three people including a couple on alleged charges of operating a Ponzi scheme and duping several people to the tunes of lakhs by promising high returns on investments.
According to the police, the prime accused identified as D Kudalkar has been arrested while his accomplices are still at large. The action followed in response to a complaint filed by Imran Khan, a resident of Antop Hill in Wadala, who is amongst several others who fell in the trap and were duped of a collective amount of more than Rs 35 lakh.
The accused floated a company having its office in the Shanti Ganga building of Bhayandar (East) and tricked people into investing money in return of astronomical interest rates as high as 72 per cent. The accused claimed that they would use the funds for investments in share trading. They shared some “profits” to win the confidence of the depositors in the initial stages which helped them build a pyramid of investors.
However, a couple of months later, they started giving evasive replies and finally downed shutters, prompting the hapless investors to approach the police. Not ruling out the possibility of the trio’s involvement in more such cases, Police Inspector (crime) Sampataro Patil appealed other duped victims to come forward and register their complaints with the Navghar police.
A case under the relevant sections of the IPC and the Maharashtra Protection of Interests of Depositors (In Financial Establishments) Act, has been registered against the accused who was remanded to custody till March 4.
