Bhubaneswar: Odisha Protection of Interests of Depositors (OPID) court in Balasore on Friday sentenced a tour operator from Mumbai to seven years of rigorous imprisonment and fined him Rs 2.75 lakh for defrauding numerous people in Odisha of Rs 1.2 crore by offering false Haj package deals.
The convict, Nabeel Abdul Mubin Shaikh (40), was arrested by the state crime branch’s economic offences wing (EOW) on Sept 27, 2024, following a fraud complaint filed on Sept 12 that year. “This is one of the fastest trials facilitated by the EOW. While the chargesheet was submitted in court on Dec 23, 2024, trial commenced in Jan, resulting in conviction only in three months,” an EOW officer said.
Investigation revealed that Shaikh had fraudulently collected money from 189 people in Odisha, accumulating Rs 1.2 crore with promises of affordable Haj pilgrimages.
According to EOW, the accused released advertisements on social media platforms. Several people contacted him over phone and transferred advance money to bank accounts, whose details were shared by him.
“Operating a travel agency in West Mumbai, Shaikh engaged with the victims in 2019, collecting between Rs 46,000 and Rs 50,000 per person for the pilgrimage. Despite receiving full payments in advance, he continuously delayed the travel arrangements, first citing the Covid pandemic in 2020, and subsequently blaming unrest in Saudi Arabia in 2023. He never repaid the money,” the officer added.