Ponzi scam: ED attaches Heera Gold boss Nowhera Sheikh's properties worth Rs 299-cr

News Network
August 17, 2019

Aug 17: The Enforcement Directorate on Friday said it has attached properties to the tune of Rs 299 crore of Nowhera Sheikh of Heera Group including 96 immovable properties spread across several states in its probe into the ponzi scam.

An ED official said in New Delhi that the agency has attached properties to the tune of Rs 299.99 crore under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The official said that it has attached properties of Sheikh consisting of 96 immovable properties located in Telangana, Kerala, Maharashtra, Delhi and Andhra Pradesh worth Rs 277.29 crore in the form of agricultural lands, commercial plots, residential buildings, commercial complexes and balances in bank accounts worth Rs 22.69 crore.

The ED has filed a case of money laundering on the basis of FIRs registered by Central Crime Station, Hyderabad, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh Police against Sheikh of Heera Group of Companies and others on the allegation of illegally collecting deposits from lakhs of investors under the guise of high returns.

The official said there are multiple FIRs registered across the country against Heera Group of Companies. He said during probe it was found that Sheikh incorporated multiple companies under Heera Group of Companies and collected an amount of approximately Rs 5,600 crore as unauthorized deposits from around 1,72,000 investors (IBG Members) across the country by engaging a network of marketing executives and direct selling agents with a false promise of paying high rate of returns i.e. 3 percent per month (36 percent per annum).

"She floated multiple schemes and extensively advertised the schemes to lure the victims. For this purpose, Sheikh started 24 firms or entities under Heera Group and 182 bank accounts were opened in different banks at different parts of the countries in the name of these 24 entities," the official said.

Further 10 bank accounts were also opened in foreign countries such as UAE, Saudi Arabia etc. For collecting these deposits, Sheikh does not possess any valid permission either under Banking Regulation Act, Companies Act, RBI Act or from any other government agency such as SEBI for collecting deposits.

He said Sheikh started gold, food and textile trading businesses only to create the impression that she was earning legitimate profits, but in reality, the payouts to the new members were simply being funded from the cash flows generated from new members/investments.

"The volume of business in her gold, textile and food marts was miniscule and not sufficient to justify the high returns promised by her," he said. The official pointed out that during the probe it was also found that Sheikh along with her family members and close associates diverted the depositors' money to their personal accounts and amassed huge movable and immovable assets for wrongful personal gain.

"The diverted funds were further layered into various shell companies and in the form of 'benami' assets so as to ultimately cheat lakhs of innocent victims and to launder these crime proceeds for personal benefit," he said.

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News Network
May 10,2024

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A day after National Commission for Women said no woman from Hassan approached the national body to file complaints against Karnataka MP Prajwal Revanna, a new FIR accusing BJP leader Devaraje Gowda of abusing and assaulting a woman has come to light.

The FIR against Gowda was filed by a woman at the Holenarasipura town police station on April 1, after her husband had filed a complaint against the BJP leader on March 30. 

The purported victim's husband has alleged in his plaint that Gowda barged into their home, and threatened the couple while the BJP leader also abused the woman.

Gowda, notably, flagged Prajwal Revanna's case to the saffron party.

Reacting to the allegations levelled against him, the BJP politico posted a video on Facebook where he details how he met the woman and her husband in his office. He also claims that the allegations against him are a plot and false.

It must be noted here that a Special Investigation Team is currently probing the sexual assault cases against Prajwal Revanna who along with his driver Karthik is no longer in the country. A Blue Corner notice is also in place to apprehend the son of H D Revanna who himself is placed under judicial custody till May 14.

In a major twist to the entire case— the woman in the FIR alleged that Devaraje Gowda who apprised BJP of the sex videos involving Prajwal Revanna— has been harassing her for the past 10 months under the guise of helping her sell a property.

The woman also said that she came in contact with Gowda during the process involving the property that she wanted to sell. However, on the pretext of guiding her, the woman alleged that the whistleblower BJP leader physically assaulted and harassed her while Gowda also threatened the couple.

The woman has now sought police protection for herself and family. Further levelling allegations against Gowda in her plaint, she said that the politico had taken her to an isolated place where he assaulted her and threatened to kill the couple.

Former chief minister of Karnataka and Prajwal Revanna's uncle H D Kumaraswamy recently demanded a CBI probe in the Prajwal Revanna matter. However, Home Minister G Parameshwara turned down the demand for the investigation to be handed over to CBI.

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News Network
May 8,2024

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Mangaluru, May 8: The health officials in Dakshina Kannada are concerned over the increase in dengue cases in the rural areas of the district. They've seen 108 cases since January, compared to 45 last year. 

Dr. Naveen Chandra Kulal, who works on controlling diseases spread by insects, says humidity makes mosquitoes breed more.

People storing water in pots and drums during summer also make more mosquitoes, he added. 

In Lingappayyakadu village near Mulky, a survey found people store lots of water because they don't have regular drinking water. Dr. Kulal says this water becomes a place for mosquitoes to breed if containers aren't closed properly.

Dengue cases are also rising in Bengaluru, Mysuru, and other districts, he said. Even though there haven't been big groups of dengue cases in Dakshina Kannada yet, the health department is trying hard to stop it from spreading. They're doing things like teaching people how to prevent dengue and getting rid of places where mosquitoes can breed.

So far this year, Dakshina Kannada district has only had 16 cases of malaria. Dr. Kulal says many of these cases were among workers who came from other states to work on building sites.

Dr. Thimmaiah HR, who works for the health department, says if people have a fever, they should go to the nearest clinic or hospital. He also says they should get tested if they have symptoms of dengue or malaria and be careful about the hot weather.

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News Network
May 10,2024

Mangaluru: A teenage boy from a remote village in Dakshina Kannada district, who was undergoing treatment for stomach pain for past few days, breathed his last after hospitalization. 

The deceased has been identified as Nithin Kumar, 19, who had completed PUC and was attending computer classes. 

According to police, on May 4, when he informed his family that he had been suffering from a stomach-ache for the past 4-5 days, his family members took him to a clinic in Kaniyoor.

The doctors who examined him advised him to undergo scanning. He was informed about a kidney stone and later, they returned home. That same night, he suffered from stomach-ache again and was rushed to a private hospital in Puttur.

On May 7, as per doctors’ advice, he was discharged around 12:45pm. However, when he came home around 2:30pm, he again suffered from stomach-ache and was taken to another private hospital in Puttur, where doctors conducted a surgery.

On Wednesday, as per doctors’ advice, he was asked to be shifted to Mangaluru for better treatment.

He visited a private hospital in Derakatte, where doctors suggested that he be shifted to government Wenlock Hospital.

The doctors who examined him at the Wenlock Hospital declared him dead. A case has been registered at the Bellare police station, and an investigation is on.

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