A 55-year-old woman from Thane city has reportedly lost nearly Rs 24.7 lakh in an alleged online investment scam, police said on Wednesday. Following her complaint, nine individuals have been booked in connection with the fraud, reported news agency PTI.
According to an officer from Naupada Police Station in Thane, the offence took place between August 5 and 28, when unidentified persons repeatedly contacted the woman and convinced her to invest in stock trading.
“The accused, identified so far only through their mobile numbers, added the woman to various WhatsApp groups promoting investment opportunities. They provided her with websites and bank account details to facilitate trading,” the officer said.
Enticed by promises of “attractive” returns, the woman proceeded to transfer a total of Rs 24.7 lakh to the accounts shared by the scammers, reported PTI.
However, when she attempted to withdraw her earnings and the invested sum, the accused stopped responding.
A case has been registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act, reported PTI.
“Efforts are underway to trace the accused using the mobile numbers used to contact the complainant,” the officer added.
ED conducts searches in Rs 346-crore bank `fraud` case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted searches across Delhi-NCR, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka as part of a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged Rs 346-crore bank fraud case, involving a Haryana-based power sector company and its promoters, official sources said.
The probe focuses on Gurugram-based Hythro Power Corporation Ltd (HPCL), currently under liquidation, and its directors, Amul Gabrani and Ajay Kumar Bishnoi, among others.
The ED’s case, filed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), stems from a first information report (FIR) registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in February. In the FIR, the promoters are accused of siphoning off loan funds to their linked entities, resulting in significant losses to multiple banks.
According to sources, the Gurugram Zonal Office of the ED carried out searches at five premises in the National Capital Region (NCR), three in Chennai, and one in Bengaluru as part of the investigation.
As per case details, the total fraud reported by the consortium of complainant banks stands at Rs 346.08 crore, including:
Rs 168.07 crore — Punjab National Bank (PNB)
Rs 77.81 crore — ICICI Bank
Rs 44.49 crore — Kotak Mahindra Bank
Rs 55.71 crore — Union Bank of India
The fraud is alleged to have taken place between 2009 and 2015.
HPCL, a company operating in the power transmission and distribution sector, was engaged in designing, manufacturing, and executing turnkey projects for power transmission lines.
It is alleged that the promoters and directors secured credit facilities from PNB, the lead bank of the consortium, totalling Rs 165.71 crore under a multiple banking arrangement.
Despite several restructurings, including the conversion of invoked bank guarantees into Funded Interest Term Loans (FITL), HPCL defaulted on its payments and was declared a Non-Performing Asset (NPA) on March 31, 2015. The account was later reported as a “fraud” to the RBI on June 13, 2024, the ED said.
A forensic audit revealed that loan funds were siphoned off through transactions with related group entities such as:
Avadh Transformers
G.E.T. Power
Revolution Infocom
TecproEngg, among others
These transactions allegedly involved fictitious job work, unpaid receivables, and circular transactions. Several large advances and sale invoices remained unrecovered for years, suggesting non-genuine trade dealings.
According to the ED, HPCL used related entities to divert funds and misappropriate assets, leading to a significant erosion of creditor interests.
(With PTI inputs)
