New Delhi: Delhi Police has unearthed a major investment fraud involving a whopping Rs 980 crore and arrested three directors of a company and an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) of police for allegedly cheating about two lakh people across the country.

The accused, Amrit Lal Syal (77), Neena Syal (47) and Pamila Syal, directors of two non-banking finance companies Golden Forest India Ltd and Golden Project Ltd, were arrested following a complaint by an investor, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Economic Offences Wing) Dinesh Bhatt said.

The companies, with headquarters in Chandigarh and branches all over the country, would invite investments from gullible people offering tempting returns of 10 times the amount invested 10 years later, he said.

The accused had purchased around 12,000 bighas of land in Ambala, Dehradun and some other places and issued a receipt-cum-allotment letter in favour of each investor showing that he has been made co-owner of the big land holding with hundreds of other similar investors, the DCP said.

The terms and conditions for investments were too complicated to be comprehensible.

The companies had appointed thousands of agents all over the country to rope in the investors, he said, adding Delhi Police ASI Raj Pal Singh was engaged for the task here.

The companies allegedly collected Rs 980 crore from two lakh people across the country, Bhatt said.

The investors have been given post-dated cheques which are bound to be dishonoured as the bank accounts have already become inoperative due to insufficient funds, he said.