Delhi EOW arrests woman for 'duping' 900 people of Rs 250 cr

Goa [India], October 13 : Acting on a tip-off, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Delhi Police has arrested a 47-year-old woman, who has been absconding after allegedly duping hundreds of people of crores of rupees, from a resort in South Goa.
An SUV, bearing a Himachal Pradesh-number plate, allegedly purchased from the cheated amount, has also been recovered from her possession, said a release by the EOW, adding the accused person would be produced at a lower court.
According to the release, a complaint was lodged by one Dharmender against the woman, who was the director of one M/s SMP Impex Pvt. Ltd, besides other directors/office bearers of the company on the charges of cheating and fraud. He accused the Delhi-Ghaziabad-based company of duping over 900 people of around Rs 250 crore.
The complainant, along with other victims, alleged M/s SMP Impex Pvt Ltd, also known as Hello Taxi, induced them to invest with promises of high monthly returns at up to 200 per cent interest rate.
The complainant said the accused neither paid the interest nor returned the invested money.
On the basis of the complaint, the EOW lodged an FIR against the woman and other directors/office bearers, including Saroj Mahapatra, Rajesh Mahto, Sunder Bhati and Harish Bhati, on June 1, 2019, under sections 406, 409 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.
Police also seized Rs 3.27 crore from various bank accounts of the alleged company, besides 60 new cars worth Rs 3.5 crore, allegedly purchased from the cheated amount from Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
The EOW said that during the course of investigation, it was found that the alleged company accepted bookings from the investors without taking approval from the concerned authorities like Reserve Bank of India or SEBI. The alleged company initially paid returns to the investors to win over the confidence of the general public, but stopped the payments after collecting huge money and fled away closing their offices.
"The locations of the company also changed frequently to trap fresh victims. Initially the company started its operation from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and after some months, they shifted to Patparganj and Rohini areas in Delhi," said the EOW release.
During further investigation, another 33 vehicles were identified and efforts were being made to seize them, the release added.
According to the EOW, several teams were constituted to trace and apprehend the accused persons. As the accused evaded arrest and did not join the investigation, legal proceedings were initiated against them, after which Sunder, Rajesh, Saroj and the woman were declared proclaimed offenders/absconders. Rajesh, however, was arrested this year on August 23 and is presently in judicial custody.
Meanwhile, a police team, led by ACP Nageen Kaushik, succeeded in apprehending the woman from South Goa on Monday after tracking her movements from Chennai and Hyderabad among other places.
About the modus operandi, the EOW said the accused induced the victims to part with their money on the pretext of high returns by investing their funds into new MLM-type schemes based on operating app-based taxi services. "They used to organise event meetings and seminars at five-star hotels. The company employed smart eloquent persons. The accused woman director also used her hospitality industry background and social status to impress and influence the victims," said the release.
Apart from Delhi, cases are also registered against the directors of the accused company at Bijnaur in UP and Jhunjunu in Rajasthan.