Mumbai’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has arrested three individuals — Pavan Kumar Odela (40), Kavya Nalluri (30), and Yogendra Singh — in connection with a Rs17 crore investment fraud case that allegedly duped 233 investors out of Rs54 crore.
The arrested individuals are senior officials and employees of Hyderabad-based firms Capital Protection Force Pvt Ltd and Falcon Capital Ventures Pvt Ltd, both involved in app-based invoice discounting schemes. They were earlier arrested by Cyberabad police in a much larger Rs850 crore investment scam and were taken into custody from a Hyderabad jail.
According to EOW officials, the accused promised investors 12–18% returns on short-term deposits (ranging from 20 to 180 days), under the pretense of financing invoice discounting deals. Investors monitored their funds through the Falcon Invoice App, which displayed fake profits and dashboards to build trust.
One complainant, an Andheri-based investor, filed the FIR after losing Rs50 lakh. The EOW has since frozen 14 bank accounts tied to the accused. The firms had no physical offices in Mumbai or Maharashtra, and the entire operation was run digitally.
Police have so far booked 18 individuals and two companies, and have issued lookout notices for five others. The investigation is being led by a team under Joint CP Nishith Mishra, DCP Sangramsinh Nishandar, and Inspector Maruti Sangle.
Authorities warn the public to be cautious of app-based investment schemes promising unusually high returns without proper regulatory approvals.
