The Navi Mumbai Economic Offences Wing has registered a case against OSSAM SWADESH LLP and its top leadership over an alleged unregulated investment scheme that authorities say may have defrauded around 4,500 investors of nearly ₹47 crore, with police warning the true scale of the fraud could turn out to be considerably larger as the investigation widens.
An Investment Pitch Built Around Diamonds
Investigators allege the company, operating out of Akshar Business Park in Turbhe, lured investors with promises of fixed monthly returns, one diamond for every ₹1 lakh invested, and a guaranteed buyback of that diamond for ₹90,000 after two years, a structure designed to make the scheme feel asset-backed and therefore more credible than a typical cash-only Ponzi pitch. Authorities say the operation has allegedly been running since January 2024.
The case was registered after Navi Mumbai Police’s Financial Intelligence Unit received a complaint alleging the company was running an unregulated deposit scheme without any of the regulatory approvals such an operation would require. The APMC Police have booked the company’s Chairman and Managing Director, Sunil Palve; marketing directors Jaydev Gambhe, Ashish Barve and Amol Jadhav; agents Navnath Repole and Dinesh Kolambe; and other company representatives, under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita as well as the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019, legislation specifically designed to target exactly this kind of unlicensed collective investment structure.
An Undercover Visit Reveals the Scale
As part of the investigation, a woman police officer reportedly posed as a prospective investor and visited the company’s office to gather firsthand evidence of how the scheme was being pitched. During that visit, a marketing agent allegedly claimed nearly 21,000 people had already invested in the scheme, a figure far exceeding the roughly 4,500 investors police have been able to independently identify and verify so far, suggesting the eventual victim count could climb substantially as the probe progresses.
Police have arrested Sunil Palve and agent Navnath Repole, both of whom were produced before a Belapur court and remanded to police custody until July 27. Efforts to trace and apprehend the remaining accused, including the other named marketing directors and agents, are ongoing.
A Familiar Pattern of Early Payouts, Then Silence
Investigators say several investors initially received some of the promised monthly returns, a common tactic used to build trust before a scheme eventually stops paying out altogether. One investor told police he invested ₹3 lakh after being assured of fixed returns and the guaranteed diamond buyback, and went on to persuade several family members to invest as well, leaving a significant portion of the family’s savings tied up once the payments abruptly ceased.
Police are also examining whether the company misrepresented the value and quality of the diamonds distributed to investors, a detail that, if substantiated, would suggest the physical asset backing the scheme’s credibility may itself have been part of the deception rather than genuine security for investors’ money.
The case bears a notable resemblance to Mumbai’s Torres jewellery scam, in which Platinum Hern Pvt Ltd allegedly promised investors weekly returns of two to nine per cent on moissanite stone purchases before the scheme collapsed, prompting an Enforcement Directorate probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act and the freezing of over ₹21 crore in associated accounts. The recurrence of precious-stone-linked investment schemes in the Mumbai region within a relatively short span suggests fraudsters may be deliberately gravitating toward gem and jewellery framing specifically because it lends an unregulated scheme a tangible, seemingly collateral-backed veneer that pure cash-return promises lack.
What Happens Next
Renowned cybercrime expert and former IPS officer Prof Triveni Singh said investors should always verify a company’s regulatory registration, financial credentials and underlying business model before committing money to any scheme promising fixed or unusually high returns. He noted that fraudsters typically build credibility by paying early investors first, using their word-of-mouth referrals to draw in a much larger pool of victims before eventually discontinuing payouts altogether. He added that prompt reporting and timely sharing of banking transaction details significantly improve the odds of recovering defrauded funds before they disappear through layered accounts.
The Economic Offences Wing said its custodial interrogation of the arrested accused will focus on tracing the complete money trail across the multiple bank accounts involved. Officials described the case as complex and time-consuming given the scale of accused, accounts and investors involved, and have appealed to anyone who invested in this or similar schemes to come forward, saying additional complaints and financial records would help identify more victims and strengthen the chances of recovering the allegedly diverted funds.
