Bhubaneswar, July 20 (IANS) The Commissionerate Police on Sunday arrested two persons, including a woman, for allegedly duping a Bhubaneswar-based couple of around Rs 90 lakh by luring them to invest in a legitimate online dollar trading business with the promise of high returns.

The accused were identified as Nilima Satpathy (41) of Bharatpur area in Bhubaneswar and Manoj Kumar Satpathy (43) of Koeri area in Jajpur district.

According to the police, the case (38126) was registered at Nayapalli police station in Bhubaneswar on the complaint of Samarjit Baliarsingh, who alleged that the accused duo lured him to invest in the online dollar trading business, claiming it to be legitimate, by promising substantial profits to the tune of Rs 1.30 crore within six months.

Police said the victim, Baliarsingh, had known the accused Nilima since 2009 and trusted her. Taking advantage of the long-standing acquaintance, the accused allegedly persuaded the complainant and his wife, Sonakshi Lenka, to invest in the trading business between February and July 2025.

During the investigation, the police found that the couple invested a total of Rs 97,28,700 in multiple instalments after being promised high returns.

To gain their confidence, the accused initially returned Rs 7,95,000. However, they allegedly failed to repay the remaining Rs 89,33,700 despite repeated demands. The police said the accused continued to mislead the complainant by citing banking issues and sending fake screenshots and fabricated digital documents to create an impression that the money transfer was in process.

When the complainant sought the return of the remaining amount, the accused allegedly abused and threatened him and his wife. During the investigation, police seized bank statements, WhatsApp chats, an affidavit executed by Nilima, a written settlement agreement and six post-dated HDFC Bank cheques.

According to the Commissionerate Police, the documentary and electronic evidence, along with the statements of the complainant and his wife, prima facie established that substantial financial transactions had taken place and that the accused had promised to repay the outstanding amount.

Following the investigation, police arrested the accused duo, who reportedly admitted to their involvement in the alleged fraud.

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(Written with inputs from IANS)