The Kuruppampady police have arrested two persons in connection with two separate cheating cases.
The arrested were identified as Jayan Gopi and Freddy Francis, both from Thrissur. They were nabbed from Edappally. They were the second and third accused in a petition filed by Jeeva of Vengoor West in Ernakulam district, alleging that the accused cheated her of ₹32 lakh by promising to make her a director board member and give ownership stake in a new company, Finest Studio Private Limited, to be floated in Ernakulam. Honey Varghese, the first accused and wife of the second accused, was still absconding.
According to the first information report, the petitioner transferred ₹10 lakh each from her husband’s account to the account of the third accused on September 27 and 29, 2022. Later, she handed over another ₹10 lakh in person to the first accused at her house on October. Another ₹2 lakh was also handed over to the third accused, the FIR said.
The police booked the accused under Sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) and 34 (the acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.
Honey and Jayan were also first and second accused in another case registered on a petition lodged by Joby George of Kottappady in Ernakulam district. As per the FIR, the accused had cheated the petitioner to the tune of ₹50.71 lakh in the guise of investment in interior decoration software developed by their company Finest Studio Private Limited, of which they claimed to be the managing director and director.
The petitioner was promised a place on the director board of the company on making an investment of ₹30 lakh. Accordingly, the first accused collected ₹10 lakh in person on May 26, 2022, and another ₹6 lakh in cash on June 3. Later, ₹9.27 lakh and ₹9.53 lakh was transferred from the account of the petitioner’s wife who was in the U.K. to the bank account of the second accused. Sums of ₹1.90 lakh, ₹2 lakh, ₹4 lakh, ₹4 lakh and ₹4 lakh were collected on different occasions on one pretext or the another, said the FIR.
However, the petitioner was neither inducted as a member of the director board of the company, which the petitioner alleged was fictitious, nor was his money refunded. It is suspected that the accused might have cheated more people in similar manner.
