The arrest of Amway CEO William Scott Pinckney and two directors is only a tip of the iceberg, police officials say.
Vishalakshi, 48, of Vengerimadom near Chathamangalam had invested a sum of Rs 3 lakh in Amway in terms of purchasing products and taking insurance policy.
A small-time tailor by profession and palliative worker, Vishalakshi also dreamt of constructing her own house. She joined the scheme in October 2010 by purchasing products worth Rs 12,000.
“The company lured me to make a one-term investment of Rs 1 lakh. They told me that I would be getting a much larger sum after five years. But, the company had actually enrolled me in its insurance policy, Amsure, for which the half-yearly premium comes around Rs 50,000. By that time, I had invested all the money that I had and also pledged my gold ornaments. When enquired, it was found that a large number of people of the district were cheated in the same manner. But nobody was willing to protest,’’ said Vishalakshi, who filed the complaint on November 1, 2012.
The situation of a Koyilandy native Subaida (name changed) is even worse. “As per the divorce agreement, her husband had deposited a sum of Rs 1.5 lakh.
Subaida invested this amount in Amway and lost everything. Subaida is afraid of divulging the information as she fears resentment from her community,” Vishalakshi said. Says P A Valsan, Superintendent of Police, Economic Offences Wing of Crime Branch: “These are not isolated incidents. Amway is operating at the national level and we cannot say how many people would been cheated by joining in the company. It appears that a large number of people of the state have purchased Amway products worth Rs 10 lakh each.” Crime Branch, on November 9, 2012, nabbed P M Rajkumar, 35, of Chennai, who was the Kerala distributor of Amway following the complaint and then conducted raids at Amway offices across the state.
