Mumbai Torres Jewellery Scam: All you need to know about massive multi-crore fraud involving Russian citizen
Torres Jewellery Scam: Torres Jewellers allegedly defrauded nearly 1.25 lakh investors of multi-crore value. Here is all we know about the scam.
Mumbai fraud: Jewellery chain operator Torres Jewellers allegedly defrauded nearly 1.25 lakh investors of multi-crore value through a Ponzi scheme after promising a high return.
The company also shifted the blame to its chief executive officer (CEO) and other employees for running a fraudulent scheme and destroying its stores.
“CEO Tausif Reyaz and analysts Abhishek Gupta organized the raid and robbed Torres,” said Torres Jewellers on its Instagram account.
How did the Torres Jewellery Scam happen?
The Mumbai-based company launched investment schemes in February 2024 that promised attractive returns. Mint reported earlier that the company offered a 6 per cent weekly payout on investments in moissanite stones.
The Free Press Journal reported that the company also offered a pendant with a moissanite stone worth nearly ₹10,000 after a customer invested ₹1 lakh. The company also claimed to have informed the customers about these stones being fake and was just handed out as a token for investment, as per the report.
Initially, this was aimed at attracting thousands of investors due to the high advertised returns. Many people even invested in this scheme after thinking it was a sound investment.
They were offering 48 per cent annual returns on gold purchases, 96 per cent on silver investments, and 520 per cent on moissanite purchases.
Impact of the alleged scam
The news portal reported that most of the affected investors are from the lower middle class, and the allure of the high returns made them invest as little as a few thousand rupees; some even invested crores.
After December 30, 2024, all the payments stopped, and communication with the company became increasingly difficult. As per reports, the fraud allegedly occurred between June 21, 2024 and December 30, 2024.
Arrested & Accused
Sarveh Ashok Surve, aged 30, a resident of Umerkhandi in Southern Mumbai, Uzbekistan national Tania alias Tazagul Karaxanovna Xasatova, aged 52 and Russian citizen Valentina Ganesh Kumar, 44, are the three individuals who have been arrested in the financial fraud case.
According to the news report, the alleged masterminds, Ukrainian nationals John Carter and Victoria Kowalenko, have fled India.
The Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) is investigating the alleged fraud case. An FIR has been filed under the Maharashtra Protection of Depositors Act and multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), according to the reports.
The company, through an Instagram post, said, “TORRES will resume operations and bonuses payment to clients!”
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Business NewsNewsIndiaMumbai Torres Jewellery Scam: All you need to know about massive multi-crore fraud involving Russian citizen
First Published:8 Jan 2025, 07:34 PM IST
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