Bizman from Kerala dupes investors of Rs 10 crore, arrested

COIMBATORE: The Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) sleuths have arrested a 38-year-old man from Kerala for duping several hundreds of investors of more than Rs10 crore through a ponzi scheme and seized a car from him.
Police are on the lookout for the wife and three accomplices of the accused, who has purchased a new villa and a commercial complex in Thrissur in Kerala.
Police identified the arrested as P S Sherin, of Peramangalam in Thrissur. He was engaged in gold and diamond business in Mumbai. He started a branch of his firm ‘Vinn Wealth International’ at a mall in the city and launched a ponzi scheme in 2019.
An officer said, “He lured investors by offering to pay Rs 1,600 a week for 25 weeks and either a gold or diamond ornament for every investment of Rs 20,000. Several hundreds of people from Tamil Nadu and Kerala invested crores of rupees in the firm. He paid the amount to the investors in the initial few months and then stopped the same.”
Meanwhile, A M Xavier, 50, of Gandhipuram, lodged a complaint with the EOW police in December last after he received only Rs 11,000 in return on his investment of Rs 1.50 lakh.
Police registered a case against Sherin, his wife Ramya and his company staff Shynesh, Roy and Baijumon under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 5 of Tamil Nadu Protection of Interests of Depositors (in financial establishment) Act on December 31. Following this, Sherin went into hiding and police were not able to trace his whereabouts.
On Monday, police got a tip that Sherin was heading to the district from Thrissur on a car and nabbed him at Walayar check post at night. He was later produced before the special court for TNPID Act cases and remanded in judicial custody.
Police said Sherin had cheated more than 1,000 investors. They have received more than 100 complaints against Sherin so far.