Two held in Navi Mumbai for cheating investors on promise of high returns; Rs 19 cr recovered
Thane (PTI): The Navi Mumbai Police have arrested two persons for allegedly cheating people by promising lucrative returns on their investment plans and recovered nearly Rs 19 crore from them, an official said.
The accused were carrying Rs 9.99 crore cash in 10 suitcases in a cab when they were nabbed on Friday, while another sum of Rs 9 crore was recovered after freezing their bank account, he said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone II Panvel) Pankaj Dahane told reporters on Saturday that the police took suo motu action (on their own) against the accused and seized the money.
The police got information that the accused had sought investment worth crorers from a number of people in a circulation scheme and promised them a return of 40 per cent within 50 days, but did not pay the money, he said.
However, none of the victims from Pirkon and Bondkal villages came forward to file a complaint.
The police held meetings in the villages to inform locals of such fake investments and asked them to file a complaint, but they were reluctant. The police then acted themselves and formed teams to nab the accused, the official said.
On Friday, the Uran police got a tip-off that one of the accused was to come to Koproli village in a car with the money taken from the investors, he said.
Accordingly, the police laid a trap, intercepted a cab and found in it 10 suitcases containing Rs 9.99 crore in cash, the official said.
The two cab passengers, Satish Vishnu Gavand (32) and Shashikant Anant Gavand (34), were arrested, he said.
The police also froze the bank account of the accused and recovered another Rs 9 crore, the official said.
Later, the police registered a case on a complaint filed by a woman who ran a mess in Uran. She had allegedly invested Rs 1.65 lakh with the accused on January 19, 2023 and they promised her a return of Rs 2.5 lakh on February 17, but did not pay the money to her, he said.
The case was registered against the two accused under provisions of the Indian Penal Code, the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Scheme (Banning) Act, and the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, the official said.
Considering the magnitude of the crime, a request will be made to the authorities to transfer the case to the Navi Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW), he added.
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B'luru: "Least priority, shifted late," says brother of patient who died in Ramaiah hospital fire
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Bengaluru: Hours after a fire broke out at the Critical Care Unit (CCU) of the MS Ramaiah Memorial Hospital on New BEL Road on Thursday, a 34-year-old patient, Sujay Sujathan Panicker, tragically passed away. His family has accused the hospital authorities of negligence, which they claim led to his death.
The fire at Ramaiah Memorial Hospital is believed to have been caused by a short circuit. Initial reports suggested that there were no casualties in the incident.
Sujay, originally from Kollam in Kerala, had been residing in Bengaluru with his family since 2004. He was undergoing treatment for pneumonia, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), and H1N1 since September 1 at the hospital.
Sujay's wife and father released a video accusing the hospital of negligence. In the video, his wife, Rohini Jayan, alleged that the hospital authorities took no action against those responsible for the fire.
Sujay’s brother, Sujin Sujathan Panicker, speaking to Vartha Bharathi, detailed the family’s ordeal. He said that despite his sister-in-law requesting assistance during the chaos, the hospital staff pushed her away, assuring her that all patients had been safely evacuated to the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU). However, Sujin claims that his sister-in-law did not see Sujay being shifted.
He further stated, “Sometime later, when a doctor arrived, she (Rohini) inquired about Sujay. It was only after the doctor questioned the staff that they rushed to evacuate him.”
Sujin added that by the time his brother was evacuated, 50 minutes had already passed since the fire broke out. "He was still inside, while all the other patients were taken out first. He was admitted to the hospital with a respiratory illness, yet he was given the least priority during the chaos. He was the last one to be evacuated."
He also claimed that Rohini had already noticed that Sujay’s condition had deteriorated and believed he had passed away, though the hospital authorities did not officially declare his death.
Sujin further stated that the hospital authorities called him and his father to the board room at the 8th floor of the hospital, where senior executives and doctors who had treated Sujay were present “During the interaction they (hospital authorities) claimed that Sujay was still alive and that his condition had worsened amid the smoke and that his chances of survival were less, which was not true.”
"Despite staff being present to evacuate my brother, they remained negligent. The fire broke out at 1:00 p.m., so why did it take 50 minutes to get him out? He was in a corner bed in the CCU, and it seemed they either overlooked the room or ignored it. Even after repeated requests, it took them 50 minutes to evacuate him," Sujin added.
Sujin also expressed concerns that the hospital authorities might attempt to influence the investigation. "They can influence anyone—any hospital, any report."
At the time of the interview, Sujin stated that neither anyone from the government nor from the health department had contacted the family.
A complaint has been filed in connection with the incident at the Sadashivanagar police station. "The statements of the family members have been recorded, and an investigation into the matter is underway. An FIR has been lodged under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) Section 106 (causing death due to negligence)," said Sadashivanagar police station Sub-Inspector.
Meanwhile, officials from Ramaiah Memorial Hospital were unavailable for comment.
