Online gambling, Nagpur businessman loses Rs 58 crore

Nagpur: A businessman from Nagpur lost staggering Rs 58 crore in online gambling and the investigation led police to a suspected bookie and the recovery of Rs 14 crore cash along with four kg of gold biscuits on Saturday, a top police officer said.

However, the accused, identified as Anant alias Sontu Navratan Jain, fled just before police raided his residence in Gondia city, 160 km away from Nagpur. Police suspect he has escaped to Dubai, the officer said.

“Prima facie, Jain had convinced the complainant- a businessman- to explore online gambling as a lucrative avenue



for earning profits. Initially hesitant, the businessman eventually succumbed to Jain’s persuasion and transferred Rs 8 lakh through a hawala merchant,” said Nagpur Commissioner of Police Amitesh Kumar.

Jain provided the businessman with a link on WhatsApp to open an online gambling account. The businessman found Rs 8 lakh deposited in the account and he began gambling, Kumar said.

“After initial success, the businessman’s fortunes took a drastic downturn as he lost a whopping Rs 58 crore while winning around Rs 5 crore,” the police commissioner said.