MEERUT: Three months after a an insurance scam worth hundreds of crores was unearthed in Sambhal , police have filed an 800-page chargesheet against 11 accused - residents of UP, Bihar and Jharkhand. The group - dubbed the " insurance mafia " - allegedly created fraudulent life insurance policies involving the dying and even those already dead to siphon off money from reputed companies such as ICICI Prudential, PNB MetLife, Bajaj Allianz and SBI Life Insurance.
TOI was the first to expose the scam and had then reported extensively on the reach, pattern and players involved in the multi-state fraud.
The investigation, led by Sambhal SP Krishna Kumar Vishnoi, ASP Anukriti Sharma, and circle officer Deepak Kumar, came after a tip-off that revealed a 26-member syndicate operating across many states. These individuals were subsequently arrested in connection with several FIRs lodged against them.
"The 800-page chargesheet, filed on Thursday, has every detail of the evidence collected from Jan 17 when an SUV was intercepted in Sambhal and unexplained cash in large quantity along with PAN cards, debit cards, etc, were found in it. That led to unearthing of the scam, spread across 12 states. As of now, we've named 11 accused, including Omkareshwar Mishra (Varanasi); Surajpal, Shahrukh Khan from Sambhal; and Shivendra Kumar from Bihar, in the chargesheet. Since it is an ongoing investigation, there are many others who are on the run or under the radar. Their names will be included in supplementary chargesheets," ASP Sharma said on Friday.
The gang operated through a sophisticated and unethical scheme primarily targeting poor, terminally-ill people. These seriously sick men and women would be falsely presented as healthy to secure life insurance policies. Since they were often close to death, the gang paid the premiums and reaped full insurance benefits soon after their demise and disappeared.
The criminals also managed to create backdated insurance policies for those who had already died. They then claimed and split the payout among themselves.
"In certain cases, they offered the deceased's family a small share of the claim money. In others, the family concerned was left completely unaware and uncompensated," revealed ASP Sharma.
Till now, 14 FIRs have been filed in police stations in Sambhal as well as in neighbouring districts such as Badaun, Moradabad and Amroha.
TOI was the first to expose the scam and had then reported extensively on the reach, pattern and players involved in the multi-state fraud.
The investigation, led by Sambhal SP Krishna Kumar Vishnoi, ASP Anukriti Sharma, and circle officer Deepak Kumar, came after a tip-off that revealed a 26-member syndicate operating across many states. These individuals were subsequently arrested in connection with several FIRs lodged against them.
"The 800-page chargesheet, filed on Thursday, has every detail of the evidence collected from Jan 17 when an SUV was intercepted in Sambhal and unexplained cash in large quantity along with PAN cards, debit cards, etc, were found in it. That led to unearthing of the scam, spread across 12 states. As of now, we've named 11 accused, including Omkareshwar Mishra (Varanasi); Surajpal, Shahrukh Khan from Sambhal; and Shivendra Kumar from Bihar, in the chargesheet. Since it is an ongoing investigation, there are many others who are on the run or under the radar. Their names will be included in supplementary chargesheets," ASP Sharma said on Friday.
The gang operated through a sophisticated and unethical scheme primarily targeting poor, terminally-ill people. These seriously sick men and women would be falsely presented as healthy to secure life insurance policies. Since they were often close to death, the gang paid the premiums and reaped full insurance benefits soon after their demise and disappeared.
The criminals also managed to create backdated insurance policies for those who had already died. They then claimed and split the payout among themselves.
"In certain cases, they offered the deceased's family a small share of the claim money. In others, the family concerned was left completely unaware and uncompensated," revealed ASP Sharma.
Till now, 14 FIRs have been filed in police stations in Sambhal as well as in neighbouring districts such as Badaun, Moradabad and Amroha.
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