Maharashtra: Two acquitted in Kitty Party investment scam in Thane | Thane News – Times of India

THANE: The Special Maharashtra Protection Of Interest Of Depositors (MPID) court in Thane acquitted two persons including a woman in an investment fraud case, in which they lured investors in a monthly investment scheme but failed to pay them the assured returns.
The Special MPID judge Premal Vithalani , while acquitting the two accused, punched the holes in the prosecution’s case as it failed to prove the charges of defrauding Rs 39.74 lakh of the investors.
The prosecutor VG kadu in his submission told the court that accused collected Rs. 1000 from each of the investor under the scheme for 36 months and promised to pay back the collected amount of Rs. 36,000 and also interest amount of Rs. 5,000 thus totalling Rs. 41,000 to each of the investor in the name of ‘Gold kitty party’.
The prosecutor said that the accused did not pay back the money to the investors. When in 2015 some of the investors visited the office of the accused they also learnt that the earlier investors had not received their payments and hence the police complaint against the duo was then registered at Bhayandar police station under various sections of cheating , criminal breach of trust and sections of the MPID act.
The defence counsel for their clients claimed innocence and pleaded not guilty but the judge after hearing both the sides in his order said, “..Investigating Officer in his cross-examination admits that during the investigation no name of any financial establishment was revealed to him. Here itself the prosecution case collapses.”
The judge further noted that it is not known how the investigation officer concluded that the total of Rs 39.74 lakh was cheated.
The judge further said, “..he (Investigation officer) could not tell how much amount was received back by the investors. Thus, there is no concrete evidence to show as to what was the exact amount of investment in cash and investment amount by cheque, how much was returned by the accused and how much remained to be paid.”