Torres scam: Ukrainian actor held by Mumbai Police's EOW in connection with case

The officials said that he is accused of assisting the alleged Ukrainian masterminds involved in the case

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police on Tuesday said that it has arrested Ukrainian actor Armen Attain in connection with the Torres scam.

The officials said that he is accused of assisting the alleged Ukrainian masterminds involved in the case.

With his arrest, the total number of of people arrested so far in the scam has reached to six.

Earlier, the EOW had on Sunday said that it has arrested the absconding accused and self-proclaimed 'whistleblower', Tausef Reyaz, in connection with the Torres scam.

The officials said that Reyaz was arrested by the EOW on Saturday night near Pune district of Maharashtra.

Reyaz, who was serving as the CEO of Torres, had written to multiple agencies about the fraud just two days before it was exposed.

Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had conducted raids last week on Thursday as part of an ongoing investigation into the Torres investment fraud, which is linked to a money laundering case.

The fraud has reportedly duped thousands of investors, with the total amount involved exceeding Rs 57 crore.

According to officials, the federal agency is targeting 10 to 12 locations in Mumbai and Jaipur in Rajasthan. These raids are part of the ED’s investigation following a criminal complaint filed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), based on an FIR by the Mumbai Police Economic Offences Wing (EOW). The complaint relates to allegations that Torres, a jewellery brand, misled and cheated investors through a Ponzi scheme and multi-level marketing (MLM) tactics.

As of now, more than 3,700 investors have filed complaints with the Mumbai police, claiming they were defrauded by Torres.

The investors had reportedly been promised lucrative returns, only for the company to stop making payments earlier this month. The fraud came to light when hundreds of disgruntled investors gathered at the Torres jewellery store in the Torres Vastu Centre building in Dadar (West), demanding their promised sums.

The police have arrested three key suspects in the case including Tazagul Xasatov, an Uzbekistani national; Valentina Ganesh Kumar, a Russian national; and Sarvesh Surve, all senior executives of the Torres company.

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