Mumbai: The Mumbai Crime Branch arrested Ashish Shah, 44, for allegedly pretending to be a SEBI agent and defrauding approximately 25 individuals of over Rs 11.34 crores.
Shah was arrested in Chattarpur, Madhya Pradesh, on July 11, and the court has remanded him to police custody until July 22.
A Much Bigger Scam?
According to a police officer from the Property Cell of the Crime Branch, they suspect that the scam could be larger, with the defrauded amount potentially extending to around Rs 400 crores and the number of victims around 500.
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Shah was active in Mumbai and the Mira Bhayander area. Several investors from South India were among the victims. Shah took money from people, claiming he would invest it in the share market through his company, but he neither invested their money nor returned their principal amounts.
A Victim Narrates His Experience
Jaipal Kodar, 43, resides in Veera Desai Road, Andheri West, a transport businessman, lost Rs 1.70 crore in this scam. He approached the Versova police station along with several other victims who collectively lost Rs9.63 crore. A case was filed with the Versova police on July 11. The investigation revealed that Shah resdies in Versova, Andheri West and pretended to be a SEBI agent and allegedly cheated many more individuals, indicating a large-scale scam.
According to the police report, Kodar, learned about Ashish Shah collecting money from people and investing in the share market through his Smaryash Trading LLP company, promising an 84% profit to investors.
During the pandemic, Shah approached several individuals in Anna Nagar in Andheri West, helped them gain their trust, and convinced them to invest.
In 2022, Shah invited Kodar to his home for a meal, and provided all the details about the share market, and assured him of good profits if he invested. Kodar was convinced and initially gave Shah Rs 10 lakhs in cash for investment. After half a month, Shah informed Kodar that he had earned a profit of Rs 1 lakh on his Rs 10 lakhs investment. This prompted Kodar to invest more, transferring around Rs 1.60 crore from his Union Bank account to Shah's ICICI Bank account through various transactions between September 2022 and May 2024. When Kodar inquired about his profits, Shah claimed substantial earnings and encouraged Kodar to refer his relatives and friends to invest through his company. Consequently, many of Kodar's relatives and friends collectively invested Rs.9.63 crore in the share market via Shah's company. However, when Kodar frequently asked about his profits, Shah evaded his questions and threatened to kill him.
Complaint Filed Against Ashish Shah With The Versova Police
Shah had been absconding since May 23, 2024. Eventually, Kodar and other investors approached the Versova police, and Kodar filed a complaint against Shah.
The police registered a case under sections 406 (breach of trust), 409 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating and dishonesty), and 506 (2) (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code, along with relevant sections of the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act on July 11.
Statement Of One Of The Many Victims Of Ashish Shah
The complainant, Jaipal Kodar, stated, "This is a big scam. He targeted poor people. Approximately 700 to 800 people from Anna Nagar, Andheri West, and DN Nagar invested their money. Mostly South Indians invested their money. People from my village mortgaged their lands and property to invest their money in the share market through the Shah. He maintained close relationships with everyone, even leaning down to touch the feet of maids, creating an image of himself as a god. But he is a fraudster."
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The initial complainants Advocate Rajesh Khobragade is the appointed legal consultant for the complainants. His assistant Asha G. Menon, stated, "First, the complaint was filed with The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) on June, 19, 2024 and the departed promptly started an investigation and statements of the complainants have been recorded. EOW had received another complaint from Jayabal Gajraj Koundar on June, 28, 2024. The same was simultaneously being investigated since the offender in both applications and nature of offence was same. Then on July, 11, Jayabal Gajaraj Koundar filed another complaint with the Crime Department in Versova Police Station, and the Crime Branch of Mumbai Police on July, 11, 2024 arrested the accused. We are now in dilemma as to who will head the investigation. My point is that the appropriate law enforcement department must investigate the matter to prevent future issues or suffering for the victims. The accused, Shah, took money from my clients under the pretence of lucrative returns, gold investment, property buying, not for share market investment. One of my clients sold her land and invested Rs.15 lakhs in this scam. This is a big scam, amounting to thousands of crores."
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