Punjab: Duped of Rs 8 crore in cyber fraud, ex-IPS officer Amar Chahal shoots self in Patiala
Patiala (PTI): Former IPS officer Amar Singh Chahal allegedly shot himself with the rifle of his security guard here on Monday and in a purported note, he claimed that he had been duped of Rs 8.10 crore by cyber thugs who posed as wealth management advisors.
Chahal, the former Punjab Inspector General of Police, was shifted to the hospital in a critical condition, Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police Varun Sharma said.
Chalal was one of the accused in the 2015 police firing cases related to anti-sacrilege protests in Faridkot.
According to police, a note has been recovered from the scene, which shows that he was a victim of some financial fraud.
In his 12-page note addressed to Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav, Chahal alleged that fraudsters operated through WhatsApp and Telegram groups under the name 'F-777 DBS Wealth Equity Research Group', falsely claiming links with the DBS Bank and its CEO.
"With great sorrow, pain and despair, I have to bring to your kind notice that I have been cheated by these cyber thugs posing as wealth equity advisors to the tune of Rs 8.10 crore," said the note.
"I regret that I did not use due caution while parting with my money," he further wrote.
The group lured investors by promising unusually high returns through stock trading, IPO allotments, OTC trades and so-called "quantitative funds", as per the note.
They were claiming to be representing DBS Group, which is authorised by GoI and SEBI (as per them) to educate and help retail investors earn good money, it stated.
According to the note, fake dashboards were created to show inflated profits, gradually building confidence among investors and prompting them to deposit large sums.
Chahal claimed he was repeatedly pressured to reinvest profits and later asked to pay hefty "service fees," "taxes," and additional charges to withdraw his money, amounting to several crores.
The former police officer stated that despite making all payments through bank transfers, withdrawals were never processed.
He alleged that the scam was highly organised, involving multiple bank accounts and individuals, and urged authorities to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) or hand over the case to a specialised central agency to trace the money trail.
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"Since this is a very sophisticated scamsters group, a dedicated SIT can only unearth the network and bring people to book. If your good self may find it proper, it could even be entrusted to CBI or a specialised cell of Punjab police," he said in his note.
Expressing deep distress, financial ruin, and emotional trauma, Chahal wrote that he felt devastated and ashamed, apologising to his family and colleagues.
"I am extremely sorry, sir, that apart from destroying my own family, I have brought the Punjab Police into question, whose own officer could not take care of the caution to be exercised", he wrote.
"Sir, I would be very grateful that if any culprits are caught and recoveries affected, and some could be passed on to my family so that they are able to pay the persons from whom I borrowed money," he wrote.
He maintained that, except for the alleged scammers, no one else was responsible for his decision.
"Sir, while advising general people to be aware of the scamsters, I have myself fallen victim to their sophisticated method," he wrote.
He also wrote in the note that he used the rifle of his gunman as he did not have any weapon.
Police said they are probing the firing incident and the alleged fraud, examining the note, bank transactions, and digital evidence.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
