THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A man convicted in a 2007 multi-crore scam is back on the police radar after being booked for allegedly cheating a Thiruvananthapuram-based lawyer of Rs 34.33 lakh by promising to start an e-commerce business. The case was registered at the Vanchiyoor police station here on Saturday against Sabarinath, who was convicted by a magisterial court in connection with the 2007 Total4U scam for allegedly cheating over 1,200 people of around Rs 200 crore through various investment firms. According to the police, Sabarinath has served the sentence given to him in some of the cases connected to the scam and in others the trial is still pending. He was out on bail when he allegedly cheated the lawyer, police added. According to the complaint filed by advocate Sanjay Varma, the accused allegedly lured him by claiming to start an e-commerce firm and sought investments. As per the FIR, from January 9, 2024, Sabarinath collected Rs 34.33 lakh from the complainant on various occasions. “He then registered a firm in the complainant’s name with the Registrar of Companies in Bengaluru. However, neither did he start the business nor return the money, thereby committing cheating,” according to the FIR. A case has been registered under IPC sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating), police said, adding that Sabarinath would soon be summoned for interrogation. Sabarinath first came into the limelight in 2007 when he allegedly cheated over 1,200 people of around Rs 200 crore through investment firms named Nest Investment, INEST, Total4U, and SJR Group, police said. Sabarinath was only 19 when he was first arrested in connection with the multi-crore investment scam.
