Thane: A court on Friday extended the police custody of a company director, who has been allegedly involved in an investment fraud running into Rs500 crore, till July 12. The 47-year-old accused, Prashant Govindrao Zade, was arrested from Bhopal on July 3. So far, three directors, including Zade, have been apprehended in the scam which duped around 150 investors pan-India.
The case unfolded when Ramadevi Nagaraju Chillapareddy (50), a resident of Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, filed a complaint at Kasarvadavali police station on March 4, 2023. She claimed to have invested Rs 2.7 crore in Zade's firm, with promised returns of Rs 5 crore, but she never received her money back. The case was registered under Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and other relevant sections.
Prashant Narvekar
Investors suffer losses worth Crores
Nilesh Sonawane, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Thane Crime Branch, stated, "Earlier, two directors of the company, named Sandeep Samant (55) and Sandesh Khamkar (48), lured investors with promises of investing Rs 1 crore in their firm and receiving Rs 1 crore after 16 months, followed by Rs 1 crore every year for the next 5 years. They gained investors' trust through false promises. Once investors had invested Rs 1 crore, they were informed that their land was unsuitable for the project, coercing them to purchase new land. The investors suffered losses in crores. On March 16, 2023, Samant (55) from Ghodbunder Road and Khamkar (48) from Majiwada were arrested after an investigation. A charge sheet was filed in the Thane court on May 12, 2023. Both of them are currently in judicial custody. On July 3, 2023, Prashant Govindrao Zade from Ambernath, the chairman with a 55 per cent stake in the company, was arrested in Bhopal. The company has around 19 directors, each holding a 2.5 per cent stake. We will be summoning all the directors for further investigation. It is likely that the directors have defrauded investors of more than Rs 500 crore."
The Thane crime branch team also conducted a check of the company's plant in Ghoti, Nashik.
Sonawane added, "We urge other investors who have been victims of this fraud to come forward with their investment documents."
