New Delhi, Nov 4 The Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has arrested a 51-year-old proclaimed offender, eight years after a case was registered against him for allegedly cheating around 531 investors of Rs 3.23 crore through a Ponzi scheme, an official said on Wednesday.
The accused, Visarjan, was arrested on October 29 from Aliganj in Uttar Pradesh, according to an EOW statement.
The case was registered in 2018 on a complaint by Gulshan Avtar, following which around 531 investors approached the police alleging that a private limited company and its directors had cheated them by promising attractive returns on investment, read the statement.
The company allegedly lured investors through various schemes, including fixed deposits, income plans and savings accounts, promising high rates of interest and lucrative returns.
The directors collected approximately Rs 3.23 crore from investors before shutting down their office and fleeing without informing them, causing substantial financial losses, it read.
Investigation revealed that the company was not authorised by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to accept public deposits under any scheme. Visarjan was one of the directors of the company during the period when the alleged fraud took place. “He evaded investigation and arrest and was subsequently declared a proclaimed offender by a court,” the statement read.
Two other accused in the case, Murari Kumar Srivastava and Bikas Howlader, have also been arrested. The accused is also involved in similar cases registered in Uttar Pradesh’s Ambedkar Nagar district, where the company is suspected of having cheated investors, the officer said.
According to police, Visarjan was earlier involved in multilevel marketing near Basti in Uttar Pradesh and later shifted to selling life insurance policies. Further investigation into the matter is underway.
(PTI News)
