Man duped of Rs 45 lakh on investment pretext

The city police on Saturday registered a case against a SAS Nagar-based couple on the charge of duping a man of Rs 45 lakh on the pretext of making investment in a chain of restaurants. The victim is also the owner of a land, where the suspects had promised to open a franchise of the chain.

According to a complaint filed by Karampal Singh, a resident of Bhutta village, here, Samarpit Ahuja and his wife Neha Ahuja, who reside in SAS Nagar, approached him in late 2023. The couple, who claimed to run a restaurant chain, expressed interest in setting up a restaurant in a commercial plot of the victim on the Malerkotla road.

After a series of meetings, they agreed to a monthly rent of ?1.35 lakh. The couple provided Karampal with several rent cheques but all of them bounced. Additionally, they persuaded him to invest ?45 lakh in their restaurant chain, promising him a 10 per cent share of profits in addition to the rent.

The victim said he realised that he had been cheated when the cheques started bouncing and none of them passed. After several unsuccessful meetings with the couple, he filed a written complaint with the police. Following investigation, the police registered a case against Samarpit and Neha under sections related to fraud, criminal conspiracy and breach of trust. The police have started a search to nab the suspects.

Karampal demanded that the police should arrest them and recover his money.