Berhampur: A special squad of Berhampur police arrested the absconding director couple of an illegal ponzi firm from Bhubaneswar for allegedly defrauding depositors of around Rs 50 crore, SP Pinak Mishra said at a press meet at the district police headquarters Tuesday.
The accused are Braja Mohan Patnaik, managing director of the illegal firm ‘Datum’ and his wife Tridhara Mohanty, one of the firm’s directors.
Police tracked their phone calls and arrested them from an undisclosed location in Bhubaneswar. They were produced in a court Tuesday, and were remanded to judicial custody after the magistrate rejected their bail pleas.
Coming to know of their arrest, hundreds of duped depositors visited the Golanthara Police Station and demanded their money back. They relented after the police assured them that their money would be returned after the remand period is over.
The couple will be brought on five days remand for questioning on the firm’s financial transactions, movable and immovable assets and the amount of money it had collected from depositors, the SP said.
The police will also gather details about the names of agents and associates involved in the illegal assets held by the firm.
Action will be taken against the couple on the basis of the directives of the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch, the SP said. Around 1,558 depositors have deposited Rs 50 crore in the firm, he said.
Police said Patnaik started his career by opening a grocery shop at Berhampur, and later launched a scheme of gift coupons promising attractive incentives to customers.
Soon membership grew and he registered his firm under the 1956 Companies Act, and opened a chit fund firm ‘Datum’ at Gundicha Nagar near Kanishi in 2006.
Patnaik lured people from in and outside the state promising to double their money through deposit schemes. He promised to pay maturity value to depositors in 2.7 years and 3 years and 11 months.
He lured more depositors by opening offices outside the state telling them that their money has been invested in SBI Kiosk, financial investment schemes, Fishfeed, oils and chemical sectors.
The depositors tried to contact his Kanishi office after the maturity period, but Patnaik fled with the money deposited by the people.
Golanthara police registered a case and sealed the Kanishi office after it received a complaint August 21, 2016. Police also froze an account having Rs 40 lakh kept in the name of the firm at the SBI branch in Kanishi.
Two of his associates, Bijay Mohapatra and Tripati Balaji Patra, were also arrested and produced in court.
Police were on the lookout for Patnaik after another FIR was filed against his firm at the Golanthara police station October 5.
As per the SP’s directions, a special squad comprising ASP Santanu Das, Sadar SDPO Ashok Kumar Mohanty, DIB DSP Ajay Kumar Mishra and Golanthara IIC Alok Jena was set up to track down Patnaik and his wife and arrest them.
PNN