Ex-Army officer nabbed for duping people of Rs 30 crore

A retired Army officer, recipient of a gallantry award, has been arrested from New Delhi on charges of duping people of over Rs 30 crore by promising them land on the outskirts of the state capital, police said.

“Lt Col (Retd) Rakesh Rana and his accomplices duped serving and retired defence personnel of crores of rupees by promising to provide land,” Crime Branch Special DG, BK Sharma said on Friday. He was arrested by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Odisha Police’s Crime Branch from New Delhi on Thursday and brought here on transit remand after being produced before a court in the national Capital, Sharma said.

Rana, a recipient of Kirti Chakra, the second highest peacetime gallantry award, had floated an NGO – Sainik Welfare Organisation India – at Dwarka in New Delhi, he said, adding, “In 2011, the organisation promised to provide land by July 2012 at Bhubaneswar’s Giringaput Mouza under a scheme.” 

However, the investors were neither provided the land, nor their money was refunded. Subsequently, in July 2015 a case was registered with the EOW in this regard, Sharma said. In this connection, two others identified as Purna Chandra Panda and Pradipta Kumar Barik, have already been arrested, he added.