The Kandhamal police on Saturday night arrested eight employees of Micro Finance, a chit fund company on the charge of collecting funds promising high returns to gullible investors in the district.
According to district SP Kuanr Vilas Singh, basing on an FIR lodged by one woman investor Mini Nayak a raid was conducted at the Micro Finance offices at Raikia and Baliguda and eight of its employees were arrested.
Cash collector Surya Narayan Panda, marketing executive officers Thomas Pradhan, Santosh Dakua, Rajesh Dakua, Santosh Panda, field officer Jaganath Sahoo, all are of company’s Raikia branch and development officer-cum-clerk Trinath Naik, filed officer Purnachandra Amat of Baliguda branch were arrested under various Sections of IPC and provisions of Prize Chits and Money Circulation (Banning) Act, 1978.
However, company’s Kandhamal and Ganjam unit chief Bhajaram Gauda and Raikia branch manager Santosh Sahoo are still at large.
The company had done business of Rs 60 crore since its inception in the area, Singh said, adding that the police seized records, registers, list of employees, list of depositors and schemes, cash books, brochures, computers and other accessories.
The case would be handed over to the CBI. More than 400 agents are working as the company’s agents in the district. A raid would also be conducted at the company’s branches at Sarangada and Nuagaon in the district soon, he said.