Investment Scam: Family Allegedly Dupes 39 People Of Rs 20.34 Crore Through Chit Funds

When someone promises to double your money in a year, this offer can be tempting. But these promises can sometimes also turn into scams. In a recent case of Maharashtra's Shirur taluka, five family members have been accused of collecting Rs 20.34 crore from 39 people by running chit fund schemes.

The accused allegedly collected money from investors from 2020 to November 2024 while promising to double their investments within a year. The case came to police attention after one of the investors, a 54-year-old Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) schoolteacher, approached the police. He allegedly lost Rs 75.4 lakh.

How Was He Lured?

According to a report by The Times of India, the complainant is the paternal uncle of one of the accused. He and his wife, both PMC school teachers, live in Pune. In 2023, he visited his late cousin's wife in Shirur taluka. She told him about a chit fund scheme she was running.

She allegedly claimed that people from the area had made good returns through the scheme and assured him that his money would be doubled within a year. The teacher subsequently invested Rs 34.3 lakh, according to the report.

A few days later, the woman's daughter-in-law reportedly approached the teacher with another chit fund scheme and offered a similar assurance of doubling his investment.

Police said the teacher invested a total of Rs 75.4 lakh across different chit fund schemes. Of this, Rs 42.6 lakh was transferred online, while Rs 32.8 lakh was paid in cash.

When Did The Alleged Fraud Come To Light

In November 2024, the teacher was informed that the chit fund schemes had stopped operating. Despite asking for his money back, he allegedly did not receive it.

During his efforts to recover the amount, the teacher reportedly discovered that 38 other people had also invested with the accused. Police said the combined amount involved in the alleged fraud was Rs 20.34 crore.

The investors eventually approached the Ranjangaon MIDC police after their attempts to recover the money allegedly failed. A case has been registered against the five family members under the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Investors should be cautious of schemes promising guaranteed or unusually high returns, verify whether the entity is authorised to collect money and understand the terms before investing.