Coimbatore: The Tamil Nadu Protection of Interests of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) (TNPID) Act court here sentenced a couple to three years of imprisonment on Thursday for cheating nine investors of Rs 17.68 lakh. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 10.80 lakh on them.
A court source identified the convicts as R Chellamani, 37, and her husband K Ramalingam, of Perundurai in Erode district. “They had started a poultry farm named KPRS at Perundurai in 2012 and lured people to invest with them by offering attractive returns. In one of the schemes, they offered to provide 200 country chickens with shed, a return of Rs 6,000 monthly for three years and a yearly bonus of Rs 10,000 on an investment of Rs 1.5 lakh.”
The firm managed to draw many investors during 2012-2015. When it failed to stick to its promises, nine investors lodged complaints with the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) police in Erode district. Police registered a case against the couple in 2016 and arrested them under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 4 of TNPID Act. The couple, however, came out of jail on bail. The case trial was held before the TNPID court.
On Thursday, judge AS Ravi pronounced the verdict, sentencing the couple to three years’ imprisonment.