Uran ponzi scam worth more than Rs 300-crore; victims may cross 2,000

The Economic Offences Wing EOW of the Navi Mumbai police is currently investigating a Ponzi scheme allegedly involving two residents of Uran These individuals are suspected of deceiving thousands of nearby villagers by promising to double investments within 50 and 30 daysFrom Rs 33000 to Rs 1 crore investments flowed into the seemingly authentic scheme set up by the scammersSources indicate that even officials including court officers participated in this fraudulent scheme About 100 victims have come forward at this point while others are hesitant to approach the police due to fears of the income tax department Authorities estimate that the total amount of the scam could potentially reach around Rs 300ndash400 croreThe entire scam came to light in February when the primary accused Sarish Vishnu Gawan was apprehended with Rs 10 crore in his car during a routine nakabandi by the Uran police This incident prompted the Uran police to notify the income tax department and relevant authorities Subsequently complaints began pouring in from individuals claiming that Gawan had been collecting money from multiple villagers promising to double their investments within 50 daysIn response the local police registered an FIR under various sections of the IPC The senior police officials were briefed on the case leading to its transfer to Navi Mumbairsquos EOW for further investigationIn the course of the investigation the police uncovered that Gawan had Rs 22 crore in his accountAn EOW officer familiar with the case stated ldquoOur investigation unveiled that the accused Gawan had been operating this Ponzi scheme for over a year potentially defrauding around 1500ndash2000 people His method involved taking Rs 33000 referred to as one coin and returning Rs 49500 within 50 days Transactions were exclusively in cashrdquoAccording to victims after receiving Rs 49500 after 50 days they reinvested this amount along with an additional Rs 16000 to acquire two coins totalling around Rs 1 lakh after another 50 days These individuals hoped for increasing returns over time The officer explained ldquoInvestors kept reinvesting with some claiming to have put in amounts ranging from 10 lakh to 1 crorerdquoIn the course of the investigation the police uncovered that Gawan had Rs 22 crore in his account and they seized Rs 10 crore upon his arrest Additionally assets worth Rs 15 crore were confiscated The investigation led to the arrest of Gawanrsquos driver Shashikant Gawan and three agents Mayur Patil Jitendra Gawan and Nitesh PatilDuring the investigation an incident occurred on March 29 involving gunfire targeting real estate agent and BSc IT graduate Supriya Patil in Uran Patil sustained a leg injury and was taken to a nearby hospital Subsequent investigation revealed that Patil had orchestrated the incident but had accidentally injured herself It was uncovered that Patil had been running her own Ponzi scheme offering even more attractive returns of 15 times the invested amount in 30 days compared to Gawanrsquos 50 daysInvestigators disclosed that on the day of the shooting Patil visited the Uran village with the intention of repaying investors 15 times their investment Lacking the funds to fulfil this promise she staged the shooting with her car driver This was done to convince investors that she had brought the money to repay them However the plan went awry when she was shot and the money was takenSources revealed that Patil had entered the Ponzi scheme business in November of the previous year suspected of defrauding over 1000 individuals Unlike Gawan who took Rs 33000 from investors and returned Rs 50000 in 30 days Patil took Rs 32000 from investors paid Rs 2000 rupees to agents and returned Rs 50000 within 30 days This led to an influx of investors with 55 victims reporting losses totalling approximately Rs 80 croreThe EOW apprehended five agents associated with PatilmdashGanath Thakur Hitesh Kadu Pranay Thakur Akshay Koli and Rohan Purekar Suspicions also extend to Patilrsquos husband Mangesh Patil Approximately 47 agents who worked with Patil are under scrutiny The police seized valuable properties and estimated that her scams could have duped people out of Rs 150 to Rs 200 croreDuring the course of the investigation the EOW also uncovered the involvement of three officers colluding with Patil These officers were allegedly receiving monetary favours from her Based on substantial evidence the officers have been suspended for further inquiryldquoThe SIT is currently conducting an investigation to determine the precise count of victims and the extent of the financial losses they have incurredrdquo said Milind Bharambe Commissioner of Navi Mumbai Police ldquoSubstantial evidence against both suspects exists shedding light on the mechanics of their respective Ponzi schemes I urge the Ponzi scheme investors to come forward and report their experiences Identifying common victims will significantly bolster our caserdquo