₹857 in bank a/c of ‘daily invest’ firm that collected ₹10cr before locking up

Ghaziabad: A special investigation team (SIT) will probe an alleged Rs 10-crore scam pulled off by a Pratap Vihar-based chit-fund company that promised high returns on short-term investments and disappeared overnight without a trace last week. Around 350 customers have submitted complaints against Royalfine India Nidhi Limited Bank and its owners so far. Police said the number could increase as the investigation progresses. An FIR was lodged against seven persons, including co-owners Syed Mohamad Jakir Malik and his brother Ehsan, head accountant Pooja Prasad, manager Vishal Upadhyay, assistant senior manager Sameer Saifi and two other staffers Lalit Chaudhary and Sahil Saifi.Police suspect Jahir fled to Dubai with his family on the pretext of heart surgery four months ago as he had stopped visiting the bank for some time. A police team visited his flat in Gaur City (Avenue 11) but found it was locked.ACP Kotwali Priyashri Pal told TOI the police department will write to the ministry of external affairs and share the passport details of the accused.The accused, police said, wiped off the money invested by nearly 1,000 customers — mostly small traders, shop owners, daily-wagers and homemakers from Modinagar, Loni and Trans-Hindon areas. The scam came to light after a group of 50 people lodged a complaint at Vijay Nagar police station on March 19 when they found the company’s Pratap Vihar office locked. None of the officials or agents hired by the company could be reached either, they alleged. The company had been operating for the past three years. A probe into the company’s books found only Rs 857 was left in its account, the ACP said.“The accused started diverting the money three months ago and the last few transactions were completed on March 18 night. They would divert small sums — ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000 — into multiple accounts. We are checking the details of those accounts now,” Pal said. Cops have recovered a few Aadhaar copies and computers from the bank’s premises and are trying to recover digital evidence against the accused. While the company’s staff would tell customers the firm was registered in Kanpur, the investigation found the documents were fake, the ACP said.Commissioner of police Ajay Kumar Mishra said an SIT, under an ACP-level officer, will be set up to investigate the case. He said the seven accused have been booked under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery), 468 (forgery), 471 (using as genuine a forged document), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 120B (punishment for criminal conspiracy) of IPC.