A 60-year-old businesswoman from Hyderabad lost ₹2.8 crore in a scam involving a fake coffee powder manufacturing company. The fraud was carried out by six people, including her own brother. The scammers tricked her by falsely claiming that West Indies cricketer Chris Gayle was promoting the company.
The scam began in 2019 when the woman’s brother and his wife convinced her to invest in a coffee manufacturing company. They claimed the company was based in Kenya and was expanding to the U.S. They also promised a 4% monthly return on investment. To gain her trust, they showed her photos and videos of Chris Gayle, making it seem like he was involved. They also told her that the company’s owner had personal ties with them.
Believing her brother’s claims, the woman invested ₹2.8 crore. When she saw good returns initially, she encouraged her friends and family to invest as well. This brought in another ₹2.2 crore, and other investors added ₹70 lakh, making the total investment ₹5.7 crore. At first, the scammers paid returns, making the business seem real.
However, after some time, the payments stopped. When the woman asked her brother about it, he assured her that their children had verified the company’s operations in the U.S. But over time, he and the other accused avoided her questions. When she pressed for answers, her brother allegedly verbally abused her. Out of the total ₹5.7 crore invested, the victims only received ₹90 lakh in returns, suffering huge losses.
Realizing she had been cheated, the woman filed a complaint against her brother and the other five scammers. The authorities have now started an investigation into the case.
