Coimbatore: The district chief judicial magistrate court on Thursday sentenced four people from Mumbai to 14 years of rigorous imprisonment and their accomplice to four years of imprisonment for defrauding more than 600 jobseekers of Rs6 crore.A court source identified the convicts as Cherian, 71, Francis Arun, 45, Asha Charlotte, 42, Santhosh William, 50, and Preetha Kumar, 41. Three other accused – Ramesh Babu, Sain and Benjamin William – died during the trial. According to the source, the gang started a firm named Yanbo Associates in Gandhipuram area in 2005. “The agency lured young professionals and labourers by promising high-paying jobs in Europe and collected anywhere between Rs1 lakh and Rs3 lakh per person from 600 unsuspecting applicants. After collecting the money, the firm shut down its operations, leaving the aspirants stranded and financially ruined.” The case, initially handled by the city police, was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation in 2012. The agency tracked down eight accused in Mumbai and seized 450 grams of gold and attached land worth around Rs5 crore in Kerala. The trial took place in the district chief judicial magistrate court, where 135 witnesses were examined. CBI special public prosecutor Surendra Mohan represented the prosecution. Judge Sivakumar delivered the verdict on Thursday, highlighting the gravity of the economic offence. The judge awarded 14 years of imprisonment and a fine of Rs12 lakh each to Cherian and Santhosh William. Francis Arun and Asha Charlotte were each sentenced to 14 years in jail and fined Rs15 lakh each. Preetha Kumari was sentenced to four years of imprisonment and fined Rs2 lakh. The judge also ordered that the total fine amount of Rs56 lakh, along with the confiscated assets, be distributed among the victims. A committee headed by the district collector would oversee the distribution of these assets to the victims in accordance with standard govt guidelines.
