Mumbai: In a significant breakthrough, Mumbai Police have apprehended the elusive Ashesh Shailesh Mehta and his wife Shivangi Lad-Mehta, accused of orchestrating a scam exceeding Rs 1000 crore. The Mehtas, proprietors of Bliss Consultants Trading Co. Ltd., had been on the run for six months, managing to evade law enforcement until now.
The arrest, made from an undisclosed domestic location, places the Mehta couple under the custody of Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW), marking the culmination of an extensive pursuit initiated around June. The case gained renewed momentum after Shiv Sena spokesperson Krishna Hegde highlighted the matter to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, prompting a detailed police investigation in July.
The duo faced Look Out Circulars from multiple states, and Gujarat and Punjab police are also seeking custody to probe complaints within their jurisdictions. The scam, which came to light in June, involved over 6,000 investors across India who allegedly lost their funds to the Mehtas’ fraudulent activities.
Mumbai Police froze properties and bank accounts linked to the couple, and the EOW now aims to release frozen funds and seized properties to gradually settle investors’ dues, as per legal procedures.
The Mehtas, originally under investigation in connection with a narcotics case in Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh, were exposed for their involvement in money laundering, illegal Ponzi schemes, and duping investors. Their arrest comes after a series of suspicious financial transactions and withdrawals amounting to Rs 174 crore.
The couple had been successful in eluding authorities, with multiple rounds of searches conducted at their last known location in Goregaon East. However, a breakthrough in June occurred when a suspected drug peddler connected to the Mehtas was apprehended, leading to the unravelling of the massive fraud.
Despite claims of being framed by their lawyers, the Mehtas are set to face charges under the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID) Act and other relevant laws.
