Chit Fund Scam
A Bengaluru court has directed a Kerala couple, accused in a large-scale chit fund scam, to present themselves before the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on or before September 4. The accused, Tomy A Varghese (57) and his wife Shini Tomy (52), are alleged to have cheated 523 investors of nearly ₹63 crore through A&A Chit Funds and Finance, which they ran in east Bengaluru for more than 25 years.
The couple was accused of absconding to Africa after shutting down their firm, sparking panic among investors. They were later granted anticipatory bail on August 21, with conditions including furnishing sureties of ₹10 lakh each. The Principal District and Sessions Court observed that much of the case rested on documentary evidence, reducing concerns of witness tampering, and allowed bail while directing them to cooperate with investigators.
The alleged fraud surfaced when senior citizen P.T. Savio from Ramamurthy Nagar lodged a complaint claiming a loss of ₹70 lakh. His complaint prompted several others to come forward, reporting similar losses. Police registered a case under the Chit Funds Act, the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Ordinance, and provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to cheating and breach of trust.
Investigations later revealed that 368 investors alone had been defrauded of ₹39.66 crore. Authorities claim the couple sold off properties below market value before leaving India on July 3, two days prior to the FIR. The case was subsequently transferred to the CID for deeper investigation.
