MUMBAI: Hiren Bhanu and spouse Gauri, former chairperson and vice-chairperson of New India Cooperative Financial institution, respectively, have been named as accused within the case referring to the alleged misappropriation of ₹122 crore from the scheduled cooperative financial institution’s money reserves. The fraud surfaced earlier this month.
The Financial Offences Wing of the Mumbai Police investigating the case says that Hiren and Gauri Bhanu had been beneficiaries of the funds misappropriated by the primary accused, Hitesh Mehta, basic supervisor of the financial institution.
Police mentioned Hiren’s father Ranjit – a lawyer, commerce unionist and a former MLA – was one of many founders of the financial institution. They mentioned Hiren, a British nationwide, is suspected to have fled the nation on January 26, 2025, and is in Abu Dhabi.
EOW officers on Friday additionally arrested another individual within the case, taking the variety of arrests to 4. In addition they secured the courtroom’s permission to conduct a lie-detector check on the primary accused, Hitesh Mehta.
The most recent arrest is that of Manohar Arunachalam, who had allegedly acquired a part of the misappropriated cash, and is the son of absconding accused Unnanathan Arunachalam. Police have introduced a reward for info on Unnanathan, a businessman within the photo voltaic panels business.
Manohar Arunachalam was produced in courtroom on Friday as was Abhimanyu Bhoan, former chief government officer (CEO) of the financial institution, who was arrested earlier. They had been produced earlier than extra chief judicial Justice of the Peace RB Thakur for remand.
The EOW instructed the courtroom that Bhoan was CEO of the financial institution when prime accused Hitesh Mehta, basic supervisor of the financial institution, allegedly siphoned ₹122 crore from the money reserves of the scheduled financial institution. Bhoan was additionally an alleged beneficiary of the fraud and acquired ₹1 crore from the misappropriated funds.
Police investigations additionally revealed that Bhoan was in contact with Hiren and Gauri Bhanu after the fraud surfaced and after the couple left the nation. He, nevertheless, claims the telephone he had used to contact the Bhanus, which constitutes essential proof within the case, was both misplaced or damaged.
The courtroom was additionally instructed that Manohar and his father, Unnanathan Arunachalam, had acquired ₹40 crore from Mehta – ₹15 crore in Might 2019, ₹18 crore in August 2019 and ₹7 crore subsequently. “We suspect that Arunachalam and Manohar additionally helped Mehta flip black cash into white cash as they transferred ₹20 lakh into Mehta’s checking account and we’re checking financial institution transactions additional,” police instructed the courtroom.
“They’re catching small fry,” claimed Bhoan’s lawyer earlier than the courtroom. “My shopper has been in police custody for the final seven days. He has been cooperating with investigators.”
EOW officers responded, saying they’ve named Hiren Bhanu and his spouse Gauri, former chairperson and former vice-chairman of the financial institution, respectively, as accused within the case. The officer instructed the courtroom that Hiren had left for Abu Dhabi on January 26, whereas Gauri left on February 10, and their sons Kunal and Karan went abroad on February 14. All of them are residents of Nepean Sea Street.
“Bhanu has surrendered his Indian citizenship and is a British nationwide now. His father Ranjit Bhanu was a widely known lawyer and a founding father of the financial institution. He was additionally an MLA from Colaba in 1978 and received on a Janata Social gathering ticket,” mentioned a police officer. A Lookout Round has been issued in opposition to Bhanu and his spouse.
Police additionally mentioned that Mehta, who had earlier claimed he had transferred ₹70 crore to financial institution accounts of builder Dharmesh Paun, had admitted that he additionally gave ₹28 crore to Bhanu, a further ₹42 crore to Paun, ₹40 crore to Unnanathan Arunachalam, and stored ₹10 crore for himself.
In the meantime, the Justice of the Peace’s courtroom has allowed an utility submitted by the EOW to conduct a lie-detector check on Hitesh Mehta, who the suspect just isn’t revealing precisely how he disbursed the ₹122 crore that he spirited away in money from the financial institution’s vaults.
