A court in Mumbai on February 3 remanded Ukrainian actor Armen Ataine and another key accused in 14-day judicial custody in the Torres investment fraud case.
Ataine was arrested last week by Mumbai police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) from Malvani in Malad, while the firm's CEO Tausif Riyaz was held by Lonavala in Pune district.
What Was The Scam?
Torres, a jewellery store with showrooms in six locations across Maharashtra, is accused of offering high-returns investment opportunities to investors and later duping them. On Tuesday, police filed an FIR mentioning a case of fraud against 66 different investors, for Rs 13.48 crore. However, an estimated 1.25 lakh people may have invested their money and lost around Rs 1,000 crore altogether.
The Platinum Hern Pvt Limited, that runs the Torres brand, is accused of cheating investors of crores of rupees through a combination of Ponzi and multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes.
The company encouraged people to invest by buying jewellery, mainly moissanite stones (American diamonds), and earn a weekly interest ranging between 3-7 per cent for one week. Initially, to gain their trust, the company regularly gave promised returns to investors. They also induced investors to reinvest the profit.
The company paid regular returns till November 2024, after which in December 2024 it suddenly shut its doors, leaving investors in the lurch.
