In Odisha, businessman held for duping woman of Rs 5.5 crore

BHUBANESWAR: The economic offences wing (EOW) of the state crime branch here on Tuesday arrested a businessman named Rajeev Lochan Das on charges of cheating a woman of about Rs 5.5 crore.
As per the EOW's written statement, Das is one of the directors of a private company named Lumex Resources Private Limited. He had allegedly borrowed Rs 5.5 crore from one Nisharani Mahapatra in 2019 and assured her of a hefty interest every month. But he allegedly reneged on the deal and did not repay her money.
"We produced him in court. Some incriminating documents, including the loan agreement, e-mail correspondence and WhatsApp chats, have been seized," an EOW official said.
Initially, Nisharani had approached the Infocity police station here seeking action against Das, his wife Sonia and three others in connection with the cheating case, however, police did not register her case. Following a directive by the court of the sub-divisional judicial magistrate, the Infocity police registered the FIR on November 14, 2021.
Thereafter, considering the gravity of the case and the lack of police action, the EOW took over the investigation from the Infocity police station on March 23 this year following an order by the additional director general (crime branch) Arun Bothra. "We are verifying the involvement of the other four accused, including Das's wife, in the cheating case. If we find proof against them, they will be arrested," the EOW officer said.
The EOW also registered another case against Das and his wife Sonia on March 23 for allegedly duping Mahapatra's husband Prajna Prakash Nayak of Rs 70 lakh. Though the Airfield police station here had registered a case against the couple on October 9, 2021, the EOW took over the investigation in March due to the police's 'inaction'.
While Sonia and the functionaries of Lumex Resources were unavailable for a comment, the commissionerate police said their investigation was in progress before the EOW took it over. "There was no negligence on our part during the investigation," an officer of the commissionerate police said.