Bhubaneswar: The Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) of Odisha Police has arrested the prime accused in a money-doubling investment scam amounting to Rs 5 crore from the Khairatabad area in Hyderabad, Telangana, claimed the EOW in a press statement on Monday. 

The accused, Dhanajaya Sahoo is a resident of Sharshada village under Bhandaripokhari police limits in Bhadrak District of Odisha. 

The accused was nabbed by the cops from Hyderabad on February 21 and brought to Bhubaneswar on transit remand following permission granted by a local court at Nampally, Hyderabad. 

He is scheduled to be produced before the designated court under the OPID Act at Cuttack on Monday. The money-doubling scam came to the fore after one of the victim investors, Govinda Chandra Sahoo of Jajpur district, lodged a complaint against Dhanajaya with the EOW last month. 

Sahoo alleged that Dhanajaya along with his associates duped several investors of crores on the pretext of doubling the deposited amount through his company “Mutual Alliance Global Pvt. Ltd.” within 10 months. 

The cops during the course of the investigation also ascertained that fraudster Dhanajaya has formed as many as five companies - Goodland Happy Home Infra Ltd., Goodland Construction Pvt. Ltd., PURIFIO Technology Pvt. Ltd., Coinex Technology Pvt. Ltd. and Mutual Alliance Global Pvt. Ltd.- between 2011 and 2021. 

The EOW sources revealed that the accused formed his latest company Mutual Alliance Global Pvt. Ltd., with its office in the Budheswari area of Bhubaneswar in 2020. 

Dhanajaya, being the MD and in connivance with his associates, induced the general public to deposit money with his company, Mutual Alliance Global Pvt. Ltd., to get high returns. 

He had promised to return double the amount invested by each of the investors in 10 months. The accused also held several investor meetings in different reputed hotels in Bhubaneswar. 

“He was soliciting deposits from the investors giving the impression that the amount will be ultimately invested in real estate market, e-commerce and online gaming, and promising to double the deposited amount as fixed share profit in 10 equal monthly calendar months,” the EOW added. 

As per reports, the accused had given Post Dated Cheques (PDCs) to the investors, equivalent to the amount promised to be paid by the company. 

He had also executed agreements with the investors pertaining to the doubling of deposited amounts. The accused through his company collected deposits to the tune of Rs.5 crore from around 200 investors mainly from Cuttack, Khordha, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj Districts of Odisha. 

Initially, although he paid a very meagre return at best for one or two months, later stopped making any payments. He later fled the state by closing down the office of the company.

(IANS)