GURGAON: A two-member team of capital market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has arrived here to question Shivraj Puri , the mastermind behind the Rs 300 crore Citibank fraud .
Officials from investigation department of SEBI will question the accused as the fund raised from High Networth Individual (HNIs) were diverted into the stock market, said Gurgaon Police Commissioner S S Deswal.
Puri, Relationship Manager employed with Citibank's Gurgaon branch allegedly collected fund from HNIs and corporates by showing a forged notification of SEBI to lure them into investments on promise of unusually high returns.
Among other things the SEBI team may try to figure whether the fund was invested in share price rigging or manipulation, sources said.
Meanwhile, Gurgaon Police yesterday questioned senior officials of brokerage firms Religare and Bonanza through which diverted money was invested into the stock market.
Religare Securities said that Puri has been a client since December 2009.
As on October 15, 2010, there is balance of Rs. 0.30 in his account, Religare said, adding, there has been no trading transaction in his account since October 1 2010.
Since the investigating agencies are already seized of the matter Religare is in the process of providing the details as are required by investigating agencies, it said.
According to Police, Rs 200 crore belonged to corporates including Hero Group and Rs 100 crore to individuals.
Brijmohan Lal Munjal-led Hero Group meanwhile admitted that its exposure to the fraud is to the tune of Rs 28.75 crore and it was done through its entities.
The fraud was detected when there was default in payments in later part of this year. The number of investors could be 18 to 20 including corporates and HNIs who are both local.
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