The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police has arrested a 60-year-old man from Haryana’s Faridabad area for allegedly duping over 60 farmers by convincing them to keep the proceeds of their crops with him on the pretext of giving them higher returns.
The accused, who had been absconding till now, has been identified as Prem Chand. Police said that he duped around 64 farmers of approximately `3.5 crore. Chand belongs to a well-settled family and is a graduate in commerce from Delhi University, police said, adding their team arrested him on August 3 from Faridabad
Police said that the farmers sold their produce to him as he has a shop in the Narela grain market. Since he was in debt due to business losses, he started retaining the proceeds of the farmers’ crops by inducing them with the assurance of higher returns and issued receipts for the same.
But when farmers started asking for their investments, neither did he return the money nor did he pay the interest and he fled to Faridabad in Haryana where he had been hiding till now, police said.
According to RK Singh, the Additional Commissioner of Police, (EOW), an enquiry was initiated against Chand based on a complaint filed by the group of farmers who had been cheated by him.
“Investigation has revealed that the accused Prem Chand had been duping the farmers since 2017-18 on the pretext of giving them higher rates of interest on the money they had earned by selling their crops to him. These farmers believed him and let him keep their money to get them better returns as he assured them that his Narela mandi shop and residence were worth crores of rupees,” said the Additional CP.
“But when the farmers demanded their proceeds and investment back, he fled the mandi. Subsequently, the farmers came to know that the shop-cum-residence of Narela mandi was mortgaged with banks and due to non-payment, the property was auctioned by bank. During the course of the investigation, Non Bailable Warrant was also issued against him the court,” said the Additional CP.