Key accused in Swapnalok Complex illegal firms case held from Bengaluru

 Hyderabad: The Central Crime Station (CCS) sleuths of the city police arrested a Bengaluru-based businessman in connection with cases filed against QNet and Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, in the aftermath of the Swapnalok Complex fire.

The accused, identified as Upendranadha Reddy alias V.C. Upendranath Reddy, and five associates are accused of floating the V-Empire firm, which also operated from the Swapnalok Complex in Secunderabad, and hiring unemployed youths to undertake fraudulent schemes.

Six persons who died in the fire on March 23 were working for V-Empire, another shell company of QNet and Vihaan Direct, officials said.

The police said their probe revealed that the accused collected money from unemployed youth and innocent public, promising high returns. The prime accused, Rajesh Khanna and Upendranath Reddy, are accused of colluding with others to hold motivation classes and lure victims in the guise of e-commerce business, with the promise of monthly returns ranging from '60,000, based on investments.

They also operated a pyramid scheme disguised as a direct selling business, which is strictly prohibited by the Telangana government’s guidelines, they said.

During the investigation, 163 victims were examined and their collective loss was estimated at '3 crore. Additionally, 35 bank accounts of the accused and Vihaan Direct Selling Pvt. Ltd, containing deposits of '54 crore, were frozen. Of the 15 accused, nine have been arrested, the police said.