Spending money collected as investments:
Building hotel, bought houses and lands :
Released on Rs.50 Mn surety bail :
Officers of the Illegal Assets Investigation Division of the Criminal Investigation Department arrested a woman on Monday (21) who had cheated a large number of people living in Galle and its surroundings by defrauding a large number of people living in and around Galle by investing their money promising high interests in local and foreign companies.
Locally, she is said to be investing in a liquor business and a money lending business.
From the year 2019 to the year 2023 for more than four years, it has been revealed in the investigation that she has taken money from hundreds of thousands
of people as investments and defrauded millions. A senior Police officer said that it appears that the woman named Nirosha Nishanthi had people in and around Galle and there are complaints against her in many Police stations in the South.
The officer said that investigations have revealed that this woman is living a luxurious life by spending the money collected as investments and has bought many properties while building a hotel that she claims to belong to her. The officer said that it was revealed that she had used the money obtained by defrauding the people to buy houses and lands in different areas around the country.
The Illegal Assets Investigation Division has initiated an investigation against her based on a complaint filed against her by a woman. The 44-year-old woman has complained that the people who gave her the money felt they were being cheated by her because she did not pay and avoided them when she was asked to return their money.
This woman, who has been lurking for about six months, was arrested yesterday after being called to the Illegal Assets Investigation Division in Polhengoda, Narahenpita and questioned.
The Police said this woman has taken money ranging from Rs.100,000 to millions of rupees and people of various ranks including Galle businessmen and government officials have been caught in her fraud.
The senior Police officer further said that she has carried out this scam centred in Galle and although a large number of people have got caught, only a small number of people who have been caught in the scam have come forward to complain against her due to shame. Police said there is a group on facebook of those who have been deceived by this woman.
Through this group, the information of the people who were deceived by this woman is also collected.
This woman was to be presented to the Galle Magistrate’s Court yesterday (22). She was released on bail with a surety of Rs.50 million after being produced before Galle Chief Magistrate Isuru Nettikumara yesterday.