According to police officials, the complainant, businessman Ashish Tiwari, reported that he received calls on January 3 from two mobile numbers. The callers claimed to represent Ultrun Ventures Private Limited, allegedly linked to The Rameshwaram Cafe brand, and offered him a franchise opportunity in Raipur. Trusting the proposal, Tiwari transferred money across 11 transactions between January 15 and February 13 for various charges, including location booking, agreement processing, security deposit, licensing, infrastructure setup, GST, and certification.
Investigators said the payments ranged from ₹1.65 lakh for location locking to ₹9.79 lakh for infrastructure setup and ₹9.55 lakh as “full payment,” ultimately totaling ₹56,26,264. The complainant told police he realized he had been defrauded when both contact numbers became unreachable soon after the final transfer. He then approached authorities on February 16 and filed a formal complaint.
Police have named several suspects in the case and begun tracing bank accounts used to receive the funds. Officials said transaction trails and call records are being analyzed to identify the accused and determine whether the operation is part of a larger organized fraud network targeting prospective franchise investors.
Preliminary findings suggest the suspects used a structured payment plan to appear legitimate, assigning different purposes to each instalment. Investigators believe this tactic may have been designed to build trust and avoid suspicion while steadily extracting funds.
Officers stated that teams are coordinating with financial institutions and telecom providers to track digital footprints linked to the suspects. Authorities also warned entrepreneurs to verify franchise offers directly with official company channels before making payments, noting a rise in impersonation scams involving well-known brands.
The case highlights growing concerns over franchise fraud schemes in which impostors exploit brand reputations to deceive investors. Police said arrests are expected once the identities and locations of the accused are confirmed.
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