New Delhi: The Greater Noida Police Friday arrested four individuals for alleged wrongful confinement of a US-based Indian businessman and swindling him out of Rs 2.7 crore.
The businessman from California, Sanjay Sharma, had come to India seeking treatment for his heart ailment but was allegedly locked up in his rented apartment in Greater Noida for over a year by individuals who promised to treat his illness using “supernatural powers”.
The police have arrested four people — Vishal Kumar, Himanshu, Mona, and Mohammed Faizan — in connection with the case and identified three more. Reports suggest the police have found the accused run an event management company and are conducting more raids to “nab the others”.
Originally from Amritsar, Sharma had been living in California for the past 22 years. He came to India in March 2022, leaving his family back home, and rented a flat in Greater Noida’s NRI City to stay in while undergoing his treatment.
The police learnt of the matter Friday after receiving a call from Sharma’s wife Kiran. She told them how the accused had confined her husband to a room while pilfering his money.
A report adds that, “on sending a team to the address, the police found the victim along with four persons. The man was rescued during the raid and the others were arrested.”
The alleged scam started last April when Sharma met Himanshu and his wife Mona and told them that his heart condition wasn’t improving despite multiple medical interventions. That is when they told him of a “tantric” who could solve his health problems. They introduced Sharma to Faizan, who promised to solve his issues. Among the payments Sharma made for his “supernatural” treatment was a sum of Rs 50 lakh used to buy a golden idol and for the puja.
According to an Indian Express report, a senior police officer said: “The accused would talk about fake tantric studies and perform tricks to impress the victim. They first demanded some gold objects which cost around Rs 45-50 lakh each. They made the victim order the gold items. After some time, the accused directed the man to shift to another place as he was living with a friend before. They asked him not to leave the room and even threatened him by saying that he would get a heart attack if he disobeyed.”
Reports state that Faizan’s driver informed Sharma’s wife about the scam via a phone call. Kiran then called the police and the arrest was made Friday.
Kumar, Himanshu, Mona and Faizan have been arrested under IPC sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 342 (wrongful confinement), 386 (extortion).
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