Post News Network
Balasore, Dec 1: Two officials of a chit fund company were arrested in the district Monday on the charge of defrauding depositors of about Rs 13 crore, the police said.
The accused were identified as Debi Shankar Parmanik (25), a resident of Sulpata village under Haldipada police limits and Bhagaban Chandra Pradhan (44) of Begunia village under Sahadevkhunta police station. While Parmanik was the regional manager of the firm, Pradhan was its branch manager.
The police also seized a luxury car from them and produced them in a local court.
The company, after opening its branches at several places in Balasore and Bhadrak districts, allegedly mobilised funds from depositors by floating lucrative schemes of doubling their investments in three years.
About Rs13 crore was collected from the investors, of which Rs1.5 crore was invested by more than 1,000 persons of Balasore town alone. However, the company closed its offices in 2013 and its staffers went underground, leaving the depositors high and dry. The investors tried their best to trace the officials, but in vain.
Bijay Kumar Mohapatra, a depositor of Nuapadhi village under Remuna police limits, filed a case against the company October 31 at Sahadebkhunta police station. Acting on the complaint, police registered a case under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, and Prize, Chit and Money circulation (banning) Scheme Act 1978 and arrested the duo. A luxury car bearing no OR-05-KF-2222 and valued at Rs 20 lakh was seized from them.
Earlier, chairman-cum-managing director of the company Subash Chandra Nayak, a resident of Sarakona village under Khaira police limits, was arrested by Bhadrak police in the fraud.