PANAJI
Expressing serious concern over the growing number of investment scams in Goa, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Friday claimed that Goans may have collectively lost over Rs 500 crore, with the figure potentially rising to Rs 800 to Rs 1,000 crore as more cases surface.
“I have been closely monitoring it. The Economic Offences Cell is handling several such cases. Goans have lost more than Rs 500 crore due to various investment scams, including chit funds. This could even go up to Rs 800 to Rs1,000 crore,” Sawant said.
Sawant pointed out that many investors were lured by promises of fixed returns and schemes offering “double income”, often floated by operators based outside the State or even abroad. “People’s hard-earned money is being looted by individuals sitting in Dubai, London, or other States. And those Goans who invested are now crying,” he said.
The Chief Minister noted that while victims are blaming the government for failing to act, authorities were often unaware of such schemes until after the fraud had occurred. “The government was never informed when people were investing in such fraudulent schemes. If we had prior information, we would have acted. The government cannot do anything after the money is already invested without any complaint,” he said.
Urging caution, Sawant appealed to the public to exercise due diligence before investing. “Goans have money, I know. But my request is do not invest it anywhere without applying your mind,” he added.
His remarks come in the backdrop of a recent case registered by the Goa Police involving an alleged Rs 7.36 cr investment fraud linked to cryptocurrency and online trading platforms. The case was filed following a complaint by a Bicholim resident, with victims also reported from Margao, Vasco, Verna, Ponda and Navelim.
According to police, investors were duped after being promised high returns through entities such as Botbro, QFX Trade Ltd, Yorker Capital Markets, Botalpha, Crossmarkets and Minecryptos.
