PANAJI
The Economic Offences Cell (EOC) of the Goa Police on Sunday said it has hit upon a massive Rs 100-plus crore fraud over nearly 14 years wherein, investors mostly from Salcete, were lured into putting in large sums on the pretext of high returns through share market investments.
However, the accused one Myron Rodrigues and his wife Deepali Parab, diverted the money and none of the investors got any returns.
Rodrigues, who is allegedly absconding and is said to be in London, received in all Rs 130-odd crores and spent Rs 129 crore over these 14 years, his bank accounts' statement summary reveals, the EOC said in a written statement.
FIRs based on multiple complaints were booked against Rodrigues and his wife Deepali Parab in August last year but Rodrigues evaded legal action and fled to London via Dubai, the EOC statement said.
A 'look out circular' and a blue notice through Interpol has been issued for Rodrigues to bring him back to Goa and the process for a 'red corner' notice is in the works, Superintendent of Police, Rahul Gupta, IPS, said while briefing the media about the case.
Gupta said, in a fresh development in the 2023 cases against Rodrigues and his wife, the EOC has now on Thursday last, arraigned five directors of another company -- Idylic Goan Gateways and Developments Pvt Ltd -- after investigations revealed that it had received Rs 3.5 crore from Rodrigues for real estate investment.
Meanwhile, four of the five directors of this company, including Sushant Ghodge, a close associate of Goa Forward Party president and Fatorda MLA, Vijai Sardesai, have got interim relief from the Sessions Court but have been directed to report to the police in the investigation, Gupta said.
Ghodge was a personal assistant to Sardesai when he was minister and Deputy Chief Minister.
Apart from Ghodge, the others added as accused in the FIRs against Rodgrigues and his wife include, Nolan Antao and Joaquim Pires both of Fatorda, Navnik Pereira of Benaulim and Vijay Joil from Sindhudurgh.
So far, the case involves complaints from 38 people who lost money with Rodrigues and his wife and the EOC said a total of Rs 130 crores was involved with the victims mostly from Salcete.
The EOC has frozen the bank accounts of Rodrigues and his wife collectively having a balance of around Rs 6 lakhs besides fixed deposits of another Rs 35-odd lakhs. Also, the police have identified eight immovable assets totally worth Rs 3.5 crore belonging to the couple and blocked sale transactions on these by writing to the respective sub-registrars.
Antao: Have not duped anyone
Nolan Antao has said neither he nor Ghodge have duped anyone. "Me or Sushant Ghodge have not duped anyone. In Myron Rodrigues case, Rs 3.25 crore were deposited in our company and when we realised it is not clean money, we deposited the money in the account of the police station as per the order of a Mumbai court," Antao said in a statement.
