At least six buyers lodged the FIR on the Barshi police station below varied sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), an official mentioned

A case was registered towards 5 individuals for allegedly duping individuals of over Rs 5 crore by promising them hefty returns on their investments in Barshi city in Solapur district of Maharashtra, police mentioned on Saturday. Police mentioned the prime accused, Vishal Phate and his spouse are on the run, whereas his father and brother have been arrested on Friday.

At least six buyers lodged the FIR on the Barshi police station below varied sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), an official mentioned. He mentioned as a number of buyers are coming ahead, the quantum of the rip-off will go up.

“As per the complaint, Phate used to lure people by promising hefty returns going up to 28 per cent on their money which he would claim to invest in share markets, algo trading, IPOs, and gray market through his firm. Phate, who had been accepting the money since 2019, gained the trust by giving good returns to some of his depositors,” mentioned Himmat Jadhav, further superintendent of police (Solapur rural). He mentioned the buyers sensed that one thing was amiss and approached the police after Vishal Phate and his spouse went incommunicado on January 9.

“We have fanned out teams to nab them. A lookout circular has also been issued against both the accused,” mentioned Jadhav.