No bail to stockbroker arrested for duping investors of ₹2.77 cr

MUMBAI: A special court denied bail to Prashant Angane for allegedly duping 52 investors of ₹2.77 crore with false promises of high returns.

MUMBAI: A special MPID (Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act) court has rejected the bail plea of Prashant Angane, the director of Concunsmart Shares and Stock Broker Pvt Ltd, who was arrested for allegedly duping 52 investors of ₹2.77 crore with false promises of lucrative returns.

No bail to stockbroker arrested for duping investors of ₹2.77 cr

According to the prosecution, the fraud emerged in a scheme floated by the accused called ‘Old is Gold’, in which he promised 70% annual return and 35% half yearly return on the invested amount.

A senior EOW (Economic Offences Wing) official said that Angane used to upload speeches on YouTube to attract investors with advertisements that claimed that an investor made ₹1 crore from the ₹1 lakh he had invested in a scheme in 10 years.

The special MPID court observed that there are documents on record to prove that the company accepted deposits which were invested in stock broking. “Induced by the high returns promised by applicant/company, investors invested their money and were duped of their valuable sum, as accused company failed to repay deposit with interest as agreed,” said special sessions judge NP Mehta, in an order passed on February 14.

“During forensic audit, it came to light that the accused company defaulted a total amount of ₹1.48 crore of investors’ money. Accused illegally dealt with investors’ money in crypto currency and foreign exchange, where the money of investors was put into, without repayment of any benefit to the investors,” said the court, while rejecting the bail plea of Angane.