Bhubaneswar: Assam’s Bihubor police arrested 28-year-old MBA graduate Nirup Sundar Choudhry in Bhubaneswar on Thursday for his alleged involvement in a Rs3 crore coal fraud.
The case, registered last month at Bihubor police station in Sivasagar district, involves multiple accused. Choudhry and co-accused Samir Pattnaik (51) from Bhubaneswar allegedly defrauded Dusmant Muduli, an Odisha-based coal miner operating in Assam for the past five years. According to Muduli, “They were associated with my business. Without my knowledge, they illegally sold large quantities of coal and misappropriated funds, resulting in a financial loss of Rs3 crore.”
Before Choudhry’s arrest in the Chandrasekharpur area, Assam police raided Pattnaik’s apartment in Bhubaneswar’s Infocity area. The flat was locked from the inside, and despite repeated attempts to gain entry, Pattnaik was not found. A woman present at the apartment, following advice from her lawyer son, refused to open the door. Authorities have a search and arrest warrant for Pattnaik, who has a history of criminal cases, including previous cheating incidents in Bhubaneswar.
Police continue their investigation to trace the absconding co-accused and recover the defrauded funds.
