 "gold, jewellery")
Two brothers who owned the Goodwin jewellery showroom chain were taken into custody for allegedly duping hundreds of depositors to the tune of over Rs 25 crore after they surrendered in a court in Thane in Maharashtra, a senior official said on Friday.
Hundreds of customers of the Goodwin jewellery chain were left high and dry after it shut its outlets in several cities in Maharashtra, including neighbouring Mumbai and Pune, besides Thane, around Diwali this year.
The firm's owners and whole-time directors, A M Sunilkumar and A M Sudheshkumar, surrendered in the MPID (Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act) court on Friday after which they were taken into custody, Thane police's Economic Offences Wing deputy commissioner Sanjay Jadhav told reporters.
"As many as 1,154 customers were cheated by the Goodwin chain after they reneged on investments to the tune of Rs 25 crore. They had fled after closing their showrooms on October 25. Cases were filed against them in Dombivali, Naupada and Shivajinagar," he said.
Apart from sections of Indian Penal Code for cheating, the two brothers were also charged under provisions of the Maharashtra Protection of Interests of Depositors in Financial Establishments (MPID) Act, officials said.
The Goodwin group has outlets in Vashi (Navi Mumbai), Thane city, Dombivali, Ambernath, Mira Road (Thane district), Chembur (Mumbai), Chinchwad, Bund Garden and Pimpri (Pune), besides Thrissur in Kerala.
