The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police has arrested Vinay Kumar Mishra, president of Delhi based Mithila Cooperative Urban Thrift and Credit Society for allegedly defrauding over Rs 3 crore from 45 people. Mishra enticed victims, mostly daily wage earners, by promising high returns on investments in his society.
After collecting the money, he used the funds for personal gain. The scam came to light in May when investors filed complaints. Mishra, who had previously worked in a similar investment firm, started his own society and continued the fraud. He was apprehended in Jalpaiguri, West Bengal, and investigations are ongoing.
Mithila Cooperative Urban Thrift and Credit Society was registered in the office of the Registrar of Cooperative Societies somewhere in 2014 under the Delhi Cooperative Societies Act, 2003. It is said to be involved in a scandal of crores of rupees of gullible investors.
The scam began to come to light when investors of the society were not getting their hard earned money back since the past one year. They also marched to the society office but failed to get their money back.
Earlier, the local police came into action and arrested one of its promoters. Swaroop Nagar Police Station was probing the matter. On his arrest, the chief promoter of the society on the queries of local media persons, assured that the money of investors was not looted and they will get their full money back from December 2023 onwards.
Talking to Indian Cooperative after news of the fraud broke United Thrift and Credit Cooperative Societies Federation of Delhi President Sunil Gupta said, “Yes, I have also seen the videos on social media related to the Mithila Cooperative Urban Thrift and Credit Society but the said society is not our member”.
“The federation will also make sincere efforts to help the investors of the society to get their money back. There are around 1400 thrift and credit co-op societies in Delhi but only 75 are our members. We are making efforts to reach each and every credit society of Delhi”, said Gupta.
Meanwhile, several investors are moving pillar to post to get their money back but to no avail. Most investors of the society are lower and middle class group people who invested in the society.
Investors alleged that the society representatives were only giving dates for paying their money back but not giving back their hard earned money. “My amount is around Rs 2.50 lakh and I have asked the society to give some part of the money for treatment for Paralysis of my mother. But they haven’t taken it seriously”, said one of the gullible depositors.
A senior citizen lady invested Rs 12 lakh who worked in the Jal board and had invested her retirement money in the society. She is also not getting their money back.