KOCHI: The police have launched a probe into the activities of a group of persons who allegedly duped Rs 4.5 lakh from a person by promising him a job on an oil tanker after claiming to be associated with a Mumbai-based shipping agency.
The fraud came to light after Nidhin Joseph, 34, lodged a complaint with the Ernakulam south police. Cases have been registered against five people including the main accused, Jain Viswambharan, of Kayamkulam, for criminal breach of trust and cheating.
The police said that Jain has similar cases registered against him at different police stations in the state and only a detailed probe would reveal how many persons fell for his false promises. As per the complaint, the accused collected Rs 4.5 lakh from the complainant promising him to arrange a job in UAE.
Though the complainant waited for a considerable period, the accused neither arranged a job nor returned the amount. The police said though the accused moved for anticipatory bail, the sessions court dismissed the plea by stating that the possibility of the accused going into hiding cannot be ruled out.
Additional sessions judge Shibu Thomas while considering the plea said, “the case diary reveals that prima facie there are materials on record to show the involvement of the accused in the crime. The investigation of the case is going on. He has strong criminal antecedents for the offences under sections 406 and 420 IPC in different police stations.”