Man defrauds many, decamps with crores

Nagarkurnool: Another usury incident has come to light in Nagar Kurnool district.

In Nadigadda village of Telakapalli Mandal, a man named Zaheer alias Chote Mia collected money from minorities in the village over the past few years, promising high interest.

However, for the past year, he has been evading repayment of both the principal and the interest, making various excuses to the victims. Recently, it came to the villagers’ notice that the number of people who had invested their money with him had risen to around 150 to 200. All the investors being minorities raised suspicions.

When the victims approached him for repayment through intermediaries, he absconded. Realising they had been cheated, the victims met District SP Gaikwad Vaibhav Raghunath during the Prajavani programme and lodged a complaint. They explained to the SP that they had invested their hard-earned savings with Chote Mia, hoping for good returns, only to be defrauded. They pleaded with the SP to apprehend him and recover their money.

The police registered a case and are investigating the matter. Just a few days ago, an usurer named Saibaba defrauded victims of over Rs 50 crore by promising high returns. Before this incident could be forgotten, another usury scam has come to light in the district. The recurrence of such incidents is causing concern among the public. It remains to be seen how the police will respond to this situation.