SpeakAsia’s Maharashtra head nabbed

MUMBAI: The economic offences wing on Tuesday night arrested three persons, including the Maharashtra head of SpeakAsia, in connection with in a Rs 2,276 crore fraud case.

The accused—Abhishek Kulshrestha, Tabrez Ansari and Saeed Mazgaonkar—were remanded in police custody till November 4. "Kulshrestha holds a degree in business administration and worked for the firm between April 2010 and February 2013. He hails from Bareili in UP," said a senior police officer. "A sum of Rs 2.25 crore was found in their account. Although the firm ceased operations after May 2010, Kulshrestha was still receiving his salary," he added. SpeakAsia duped more than 24 lakh investors by posing as a survey firm. Cases against the firm have been filed in police stations across various states.