A case of fraud involving nearly ₹84 lakh under the guise of investment in the silver trading business has come to light in the Khar area. The Khar police have registered a case of fraud against three members of the same family and have started an investigation.
According to the police, the accused have been identified as Naitik Madanlal Jain, Madanlal Jain, and Bhavik. Naitik and Madanlal are father and son, while Bhavik is Madanlal's son-in-law.
The police revealed that the complainant, Hitesh Mohan Shroff, resides in Khar and runs an internet service provider business in Mumbai under the name Airnet Wireless Broadband. His father had a jewelry business in South Mumbai, where he met Madanlal Jain, who had a wholesale silver jewelry business in Kalbadevi. Hitesh Shroff has had a personal relationship with the Jain family for the past thirty years. In 2016, Hitesh's father, Mohan Shroff, and his brother, Rakesh Shroff, started their own clothing business.
In October 2023, Madanlal and Naitik Jain visited Hitesh's shop and offered him an opportunity to invest in their business, Lotus Trading of Silver Items and Fashion Jewelry. They claimed that their company purchases cheap silver jewelry from China and sells it wholesale to jewelers in India, assuring Hitesh of substantial profits. Trusting their long-standing business and family relationship, Hitesh decided to invest in their venture.
Between October 2023 and February 2024, Hitesh's father, Mohan Shroff, and his brother, Rakesh Shroff, invested ₹75 lakh in the business. They received ₹36 lakh in return but did not receive the remaining principal amount of ₹46 lakh along with ₹30 lakh in interest. Despite repeated inquiries, Naitik, Madanlal, and Bhavik failed to provide any satisfactory response. In January, the trio promised to return the money or provide silver jewelry of equivalent value, but they neither returned the money nor delivered the jewelry within the agreed timeframe. Consequently, they defrauded Hitesh of ₹62 lakh in principal and ₹22 lakh in interest.
Following this, Hitesh filed a complaint with the Khar police. After investigating the complaint, the police have registered a case of fraud against Naitik Jain, Madanlal Jain, and Bhavik. An officer stated that the police would soon summon the accused for questioning.