Nagpur businessman loses Rs 58 cr in online gambling, police seize Rs 17 cr and 14 kg of gold from accused's house

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A businessman from Nagpur has incurred a staggering loss of Rs 58 crore in online gambling, leading to a police investigation that resulted in the discovery of a suspected bookie's involvement.

The police conducted a raid at the bookie's residence in Gondia city, located 160 km away from Nagpur, and seized Rs 17 crore in cash besides 14 kg of gold from the house, police said here on Saturday.

The accused, identified as Anant alias Sontu Navratan Jain, managed to escape just before the police arrived, and there are suspicions that he may have fled to Dubai.

The investigation revealed that Jain convinced the complainant, the businessman, to explore online gambling as a profitable avenue. Despite initial hesitance, the businessman was persuaded to invest Rs 8 lakh through a hawala merchant.

Jain provided the businessman with a WhatsApp link to open an online gambling account, and after initially experiencing success, the businessman suffered significant losses, amounting to Rs 58 crore, while winning around Rs 5 crore.

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When the businessman grew suspicious and demanded his money back, Jain refused. The businessman then lodged a complaint with the cyber police, leading to the registration of a fraud case under the Indian Penal Code. The police subsequently raided Jain's residence, where they discovered a substantial amount of evidence, including Rs 14 crore in cash and four kilograms of gold biscuits. The exact total of the seizure is yet to be determined as the large sum of cash is being counted.

Last month, Mumbai Police arrested two persons who were part of a racket that allegedly siphoned off Rs 7.5 crore from the bank accounts of a city-based businessman over the last four years

The businessman, who is in the transport and aviation businesses, lodged an FIR against 11 people including his trusted accountant in April.

According to the complainant, the accused included his two cousins and as many friends along with others.

In the last four years, all the 11 accused, including five women, transferred Rs 7.5 crore from the bank accounts of the companies run by the complainant as well as his personal account, to their accounts, the official said.

The incident came to light when the businessman was informed about some suspicious transactions in his accounts by his bank.

The businessman had initially approached the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police but the case was transferred to Sahar police station. (Agencies)