Dubai-based businessman Ravindra Nath Soni allegedly ran a massive scam duping Rs 970 crore from hundreds of investors in the UAE and India.
Soni, 44, who is wanted in Dubai, left the UAE more than a year ago. He ran an entity named BlueChip from its office in Bur Dubai and offered 3 per cent monthly returns under the guise of forex trading. However, investors were shocked afterthe company was found abandoned in March 2024.
He was hiding in Dehradun and was interestingly tracked down by Kanpur police through a food delivery order. At least 10 bank accounts belonging to Soni have been frozen by the authorities. He was remanded in judicial custody. Police are looking into his banks documents, passport entries and digital transactions.
One of the cases against Soni was filed in the UAE and the rest in India. Most of his victims were Indian expats who came to the UAE to make a living. Several people from Kerala and Uttar Pradesh have lodged complaints while more are expected to be filed in the coming days. Of these two complainants reportedly lost Rs 4 crore each.
The investigators in India have identified 12 foreign associates of Soni. Some of them are based in Dubai while others are reportedly from the US and Japan. They allegedly helped him transfer the illegally obtained money. He used multiple layered accounts to move the money and then converted them into cryptocurrency through his foreign associates.
In 2019, Soni was arrested in a separate fraud case in Aligarh.
