COIMBATORE: Over 5,000 people gathered on the Salem- Kochi national highways in Coimbatore district on Monday demanding the police to withdraw the case filed against the firm MYV3ADS, which lures people to join schemes with attractive returns for watching online advertisements.
The investors had gathered since 10 am after MYV3ADS MD Sakthi Anandhan, on his YouTube channel, asked investors to gather at a place near the bypass, which affected the traffic. Around 1 pm, after the revenue and police officials held talks with Anandhan, a resident of Vellakinar in Coimbatore, the crowd dispersed.
MYV3ADS was started three years ago and lakhs of people from various districts and states have paid to join schemes offered by the firm. On January 19, after the Coimbatore City Crime Branch police registered an FIR against the firm under five sections of the Prize Chits and Money Circulation (Banning) Act and the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes (BUDS) Act, the ‘investors’ decided to submit a petition at Coimbatore district Collectorate on Monday asking to withdraw the FIR.
According to the police, a few months ago, the Coimbatore city cyber crime police initiated the probe against the firm after noticing advertisements about a mobile application owned by the firm on YouTube, claiming people can earn from Rs 5 to Rs 1,800 per day by watching advertisements.
The investigation revealed that people could join six different schemes by paying Rs 360 to Rs 1.2 lakh. Once they joined, the firm would give them Ayurvedic medicine products and members would get be paid for referring new members. The firm allegedly makes the public believe they can earn huge income by simply viewing the advertisements, said the police.
“The firm’s website has catchy announcements about promotional income and special reward for bringing new members to the scheme. It is suspected that the firm is luring people by making them invest in their schemes without explaining basic information about the uses of medicines or sharing of the profit. Also circulating medicines without the prescription is an offence,” said the FIR.
A senior police officer said that the investigation is in the initial state and the firm was booked for preventive measures.