The sleuths of the Central Crime Branch investigating the array of cheating cases against Power Star Srinivasan found that the comedian had invested several crores of rupees in the film industry and had produced four Kollywood films with the money he swindled from unsuspecting businessmen.
Four cases have so far been registered against him and the police said that he had cheated different people to the tune of over Rs 7 crore. The cops also conducted searches in his house and clinic at Anna Nagar and were likely to conduct inquiries with his acquaintances in and outside the film industry. They have frozen his bank accounts.
Police said Srinivasan, a native of Simakkal in Madurai city, invested several crores of rupees that he allegedly swindled through a trading firm that he started. He produced four films - Lathika, Indirasena, Dhesiya Nedumsalai and Ananda Thollai.
Police said Srinivasan, who completed his Bachelor’s Degree at Madurai Kamarajar University and studied acupuncture treatment at a Chinese university through correspondence, started Baba Trading Company promising large sums of low-interest loans to businessmen. He reportedly engaged many brokers and received several lakhs from the loan-seekers as commission.
However, he did not fulfill his assurances and, instead, led a luxurious life purchasing a bungalow in Anna Nagar, police said. His acupuncture clinic was not giving him good returns and, hence, he started the company, police added.
Srinivasan, who also wanted to become an actor, divorced his first wife Vijaya of Madurai and later got married to Julie, living in Anna Nagar in Chennai, police said.
The searches in his house did not throw up any incriminating documents, police revealed. They were gathering details of properties that he had purchased.
Three more cases
The comedian, who was arrested following a complaint from Ranganathan of Ongole in Andhra Pradesh, was booked in three more cases based on complaints made by three realtors, two of them from outside the state.
In one of the complaints, police said Jagit Singh, a real estate promoter from Chandigarh, submitted to the City Police Commissioner S George that he sought a loan of Rs 200 crore from Srinivasan’s trading company in October 2012 through a broker, Christopher. He paid Rs 2 crore as commission. Neither the loan was given, nor the commission returned.
In another case, Prakash J Rathod, a physically challenged realtor from Doboin, Jairam Nagar, Goa, was suffering from an ailment. He approached Srinivasan in December 2012 seeking a loan of Rs 10 crore as he wanted more profit from his business to be able to pay for his treatment. Prakash paid Rs 16.5 lakh as commission to the comedian who began slinking away citing Income Tax and year-end issues.
In the third complaint, Jaganathan, a lawyer from Besant Nagar who was also into real estate, sought a Rs 3-crore loan from Srinivasan in March 2012. The comedian allegedly told him that he would arrange for a minimum of Rs 5 crore loan. Jaganathan gave him Rs 70 lakh to secure Rs 7 crore loan.
The police registered cases based on all the three complaints.