Surat investors duped of Rs 2.86 crore by Pune firm; ED investigates Rs 125 crore hawala scam

Surat: A Pune-based company duped Surat investors of Rs 2.86 crore through a fraudulent investment scheme.

Vips Group of Companies promised a 3 per cent monthly return on investments and further enticed investors by organising international tours to destinations like Thailand, Dubai, and Singapore.

Nine residents of Surat have fallen victim to the scam, and a complaint has been filed against seven individuals, including the company's director and agents, at the Umra police station.

The case has been transferred to the Economic Offenses Cell, which has arrested one of the agents and secured remand until December 19 for further investigation.

In a parallel investigation, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) discovered that the company had transferred Rs 125 crore abroad through hawala channels.

The company allegedly collected funds under various schemes and sent the money to foreign accounts under the guise of forex trading.

The firm had even set up a company named Kana Capital in Dubai for this purpose.

On October 9, 2023, the ED raided the company, seizing significant sums, and registered a case in Pune regarding the hawala transactions.

More details in this case are awaited.

Meanwhile, in July 2024, Chinchwad police arrested a debt-ridden textile trader from Surat for allegedly facilitating cybercriminals by allowing them to park money from cyber scams in his bank account.

The funds, siphoned from various victims, were funnelled through cryptocurrency and hawala channels to international masterminds operating out of Dubai.

The scammers convinced the victims they were earning significant profits, with the app showing returns of over Rs 14 crore on their Rs 2.45 crore investment. However, the investors realised they had been defrauded when they could not withdraw any supposed profits.

Investigators discovered that the trader's bank account was flagged in connection with 56 cybercrime cases across India, with transactions worth several crores processed over the past few months.

Victims lost a combined Rs 2.45 crore after being lured into investing in a fraudulent stock trading app by cybercriminals who misused the name of a reputable international brokerage firm.