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Dubai police arrest Shine City ‘mastermind’, ED expected to bring him to Lucknow
Declared a proclaimed offender 10 months ago, Rashid Naseem faces 554 FIRs as agencies tighten the noose in one of Uttar Pradesh’s biggest alleged ponzi scams
In a major breakthrough, the Dubai police have arrested Rashid Naseem, the promoter of Shine City Group, who is accused of orchestrating an investment fraud estimated between ₹800 crore and ₹1,000 crore, officials said on Friday. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is expected to bring him to Lucknow for further investigation.
A Special PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court in Lucknow had declared Naseem a proclaimed offender under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA) in April last year.
He allegedly fled India in 2019 after collecting massive sums from investors by promising lucrative returns on real estate projects.
Police registered 554 FIRs against Naseem and his companies across Uttar Pradesh. Investigators alleged that funds were mobilised under the guise of real estate investments, including plots, flats and housing schemes, but promised returns were never delivered.
The action in Dubai followed requests from the ED and the state’s Economic Offences Wing, coordinated between Indian authorities and officials in the United Arab Emirates.
The ED has described Naseem as the “mastermind” of the fraud, alleging that he diverted and utilised these funds to purchase immovable and movable properties, including land, residential flats, jewellery and luxury vehicles.
Agencies had been tracking Naseem’s location for an extended period before the arrest.
Government enforcement agencies have already attached properties worth hundreds of crores linked to Naseem and his associates.
In a 2021 audio clip that surfaced publicly, Naseem claimed authorities seized assets worth nearly ₹500 crore, which he alleged had a current market value of around ₹1,000 crore.
The audio also mentioned that nearly ₹300 crore was allegedly stuck between farmers and brokers due to registry disputes and absconding middlemen, leaving several projects mired in legal complications. Investigating agencies are independently verifying these claims.
The state home department had announced a reward of ₹5 lakh each on Rashid Naseem and his brother Asif. Earlier, the bounty stood at ₹50,000 each. Rewards were also declared on five other accused linked to the company.
Asif Naseem has already been arrested from Prayagraj. Both the ED and the Economic Offences Wing are continuing parallel investigations under court supervision. Officials believe that Naseem’s custodial interrogation could expose a wider financial and international network.
Investigators claim that Naseem continued to operate the network from Dubai, routing funds and directing associates in India. He reportedly reached Dubai after being arrested and later securing bail in Nepal in 2018.
Authorities are also probing possible international connections and examining the channels through which funds were allegedly diverted overseas.
Naseem, originally from GTB Nagar in Kareli, Prayagraj, faces the highest number of cases in Lucknow, where the company’s headquarters was located. FIRs have been registered in several areas, including Gomti Nagar, Vikas Nagar, Bakshi Ka Talab, Mohanlalganj and Gosaiganj.
Cases have also been filed in Prayagraj and Varanasi. Proceedings under the Gangster Act were initiated from Varanasi.
Investigators allege that Shine City operated a ponzi and pyramid-style scheme, mobilising funds through attractive real estate investment plans. New investor funds were allegedly used to pay earlier investors, creating a façade of high returns.
Many investors neither received possession of promised plots nor returns on investment. In several cases, plot documents were found to be forged.
Funds collected from investors were allegedly transferred to multiple shell companies, directors and associates. Investigators have identified more than 34 suspected shell entities linked to the operation.
A probe by the real estate regulator reportedly found that while only 58 plots were officially registered in Lucknow, bookings exceeding 3,000 were shown.
So far, 62 individuals have been arrested in connection with the case. Among them are Asif Naseem (managing director), arrested in November 2021, and vice president Manish Jaiswal, arrested in September 2024. Several other directors and associates have also been taken into custody.
The ED initiated a money laundering probe in January 2021 based on the 554 FIRs. So far, properties worth ₹266.70 crore have been attached. These include 24 agricultural land parcels worth ₹47.80 crore in Mohanlalganj (Lucknow), six residential plots worth ₹16.5 crore in Barabanki, commercial properties worth ₹9.27 crore in the Springdale project in Rewari, Haryana, and assets worth ₹20 crore in Patna, Bihar.
Shine City projects were spread across Lucknow, Kanpur, Prayagraj, Barabanki, Varanasi and Kaushambi, among other districts.
In January 2026, the ED officials submitted a dossier to the UAE authorities, which included an extradition request, the Interpol Red Notice and an FEOA declaration, officials said. The ED is now making arrangements to bring him back to India, they added.
(With agency inputs)
