BENGALURU: Thousands of investors gathered in front of IMA Jewels in Shivajinagar on Monday, after its founder and managing director Mohammed Mansoor Khan went absconding.
Before fleeing, he posted an audio clip saying he would have committed suicide by the time people listen to the recording. The clip went viral, spreading panic among investors.
TNIE has learnt that Khan fled to the UAE on the evening of June 8. A senior police officer confirmed, on condition of anonymity, that he had left the country.
“He fled to UAE on Saturday evening. There were many people enquiring about his earlier complaints and coming forward to register complaints. Getting a hint of this, Mansoor Khan managed to flee,” the officer said.
A police officer said that Khan, in the audio note, alleged that Congress MLA Roshan Baig had taken Rs 400 crore from him, and claimed that the politician did not repay him after he failed to get a ticket from the party.
Khan also claimed he was being harassed by other politicians and government officers who had taken money from him.
Baig claimed the audio was fake, and it could be his own party people who want to tarnish his image.
Rahul Kumar Shahapurwad, DCP (East), convinced the investors that a case had been filed against IMA Jewels. Police suspect that Khan fled, leaving the audio message behind to mislead the police and investors.
Special teams have been formed to trace Khan after Commercial Street police registered an FIR.
In 2018, after a similar scam in Hyderabad, the Karnataka government had issued a notice in a leading daily to forfeit all movable and immovable properties of Bengaluru-based I Monetary Advisory Pvt Ltd (IMA) and its promoters and directors.
IMA was found guilty of illegally collecting money, diverting funds to its directors and defaulting on repayments. More than 1 lakh people reportedly invested in IMA Jewels.
The notice was issued by Assistant Commissioner (North) and had the names of 16 entities, including IMA, its managing director and chief executive officer Mohammed Mansoor Khan, directors Nasir Hussain, Naveed Ahmed Nattamkar, Nizamuddin Azeemuddin, Afshan Tabassum, Afsar Pasha and Arshad Khan.
However, police did not take any action and allowed him to run his business as usual.
Audio clip addresses commissioner
“I will not be in this world by the time you listen to the audio. With a lot of difficulty... I made this company but Central and state government corruption have made my life miserable. The local MLA of Shivajinagar has refused to return Rs 400 crore that I had given him. He started sending his goons to my office and home. So I have hidden my family in a village but I’m in South Bengaluru. I have 500 crore properties, 33,000-carat diamonds and I also have gold (sic). Sell all this to return the investors their money. But there are many fraud guys among these investors. So please check and give the money. BDA Kumar has 5 crore and local MLA has my money, which needs to be recovered.. recover from them.”
Audio is fake, says Baig
Reacting to the allegations, MLA Roshan Baig said, “Someone circulated the audio which is fake... no direct audio clip reached the police officials so far. If Khan’s allegations were true, he could have sent it directly to the commissioner..”
"I think my own party people are behind this to tarnish my image. I don’t have any kind of relation with Khan’s business,” Baig added.