The Odisha Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has arrested a Chartered Accountant and his wife from Noida, Uttar Pradesh, in connection with a massive Rs20 crore investment fraud involving unregulated deposit schemes.
The accused have been identified as Chandra Sekhar Sahoo and his wife Jharana Sahoo, natives of the Anandapur area in Odisha’s Keonjhar district. The couple was arrested on December 12 in connection with EOW Police Station Case No. 18/25, registered on December 8 following a complaint filed by Jayant Mishra, an employee of MCL, Talcher.
During the investigation, EOW officials found that Chandra Sekhar Sahoo, who previously worked as a Chartered Accountant with MCL, Talcher, resigned from his job and incorporated M/s Evoreach Ventures Pvt. Ltd. in 2021. He served as the Managing Director, while his wife Jharana was a Director in the company.
According to EOW sources, the accused later converted the company into a Public Limited entity and illegally floated several unregulated deposit schemes, luring investors with promises of exceptionally high returns. Investors were allegedly assured that their money would double within 30 months, with monthly payouts spread across 30 instalments.
The complainant stated that he and his wife invested over Rs1.05 crore in various schemes of Evoreach Ventures Pvt. Ltd. between February 2022 and February 2024, after being induced by the accused couple.
Investigators further revealed that Chandra Sekhar Sahoo collected funds from numerous individuals not only for company investments but also under the pretext of share trading through platforms such as Octa FX and other trading firms. Investors were told that the money was being deployed in businesses including real estate, retail marts, pearl culture, fish farming, and hotels.
However, EOW officials found that investor funds were deposited into both company accounts and the personal bank accounts of the Directors. To gain trust, the accused allegedly distributed colourful brochures, issued fake certificates and bonds, and initially paid returns to a few investors.
After a brief period, the accused shut down company offices located at Handidhua in Talcher and Patia in Bhubaneswar, and subsequently went absconding.
EOW sources stated that investors from Odisha as well as cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, and Delhi invested large sums in the fraudulent schemes. Preliminary findings indicate that the accused collected approximately Rs20 crore from hundreds of investors through Evoreach Ventures Pvt. Ltd., Stolax India Pvt. Ltd., and Evoreach Nidhi Ltd.
Further investigation is underway to trace the money trail and identify additional victims.
