Ludhiana trader held for duping friend’s father of ₹31 lakh

Manpreet Singh alleged that on July 10 the accused lured his father Joginder Singh, who runs a grocery store, into investing Rs 25 lakh in a Ponzi scheme

A trader was arrested on Sunday for allegedly duping his friend’s father of Rs 31 lakh by luring him with a Ponzi scheme that would double his money.

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The accused has been identified as Sham Lal of Kabir Nagar. His three unidentified accomplices are at large.

In his complaint to the Daresi police, Manpreet Singh of Guru Nanak Nagar stated that on July 10 the accused lured his father Joginder Singh, who runs a grocery store, into investing Rs 25 lakh in a Ponzi scheme.

On July 17, Sham Lal called his father from an unknown number, claiming that he was arrested by the CIA staff of the Chandigarh Police and he will also be arrested if they failed to pay them Rs 6 lakh. To arrange the money, his father had to sell his car, Singh alleged.

Later, Sham Lal’s accomplice posed as a policeman and collected the money.

But, finding something amiss, Singh followed the “cop” and noticed that he went to Sham Lal’s house in Kabir Nagar. Therefore, he filed a police complaint.

ASI Om Parkash, who is investigating the case, said a case under Sections 420 (cheating), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered against the accused at the Daresi police station. A hunt is on to nab the accused’s accomplices.