UAE residents affected by Heera Group scam receive boost in legal fight
Breaking news: Nowhera Shaik, kingpin of infamous Heera Gold scam by Heera Group losses in Hyderabad Court Hyderabad: The Heera Gold scam took a major turn on Friday as a Hyderabad court dismissed multiple applications filed by Nowhera Shaik, founder of Heera Group, to cancel non bailable warrants issued against her. The announcement is a relief to thousands of victims, including hundreds of UAE investors, many of whom invested their life savings or took loans to place with the now-defunct scheme.
Heera Gold Losses Gives Business would be Investors in UAE a Second Thought 
Nowhera Shaik-led Heera Group is allegedly running a Ponzi-type scheme through its run businesses such as Heera Gold, Heera Textiles and Heera Foodex. The scheme assured investors of monthly returns of up to 36 percent, and annual profits of 80 percent, attracting over 100,000 people, including many in the United Arab Emirates.
But aggressive marketing of the investment as offering Dh3,250 a month in return for a Dh100,000 investment raised interest from the South East Asian investor community. But by 2018 the payouts stopped, and its operations in Jumeirah Lake Towers, Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah were discovered abandoned.
Refuse Plea to Court; Warrants Stand
On May 19, Nampally sessions court in Hyderabad dismissed four petitions by Shaik seeking to recall the non-bailable warrants against her. The court also observed her repeated non-attendance, despite being given various opportunities and conditional admissions. The noose tightens around Shaik with this ruling, particularly given ongoing criminal prosecutions and enforcement activities.
One of the main complainant and president All India Heera Group Victims Association, Shahbaz Ahmad Khan said.
“She was able to keep dodging these court appearances while people’s lives were getting destroyed. The NBW is fighting shy of being issued. Accountability should now follow,” he said.
New Complaints Lodged by Victims in the UAE
Khan said there have been fresh complaints from UAE residents who were beguiled by Heera’s ploys. Some of the victims have lost their homes and are now being pursued for debt repayment by banks and lenders.
Indian SC had earlier ordered Nowhera Shaik to deposit 250 million (Dh10. 57 million) in three months. She has not done so, and the court could soon revoke her bail. India’s Enforcement Directorate has also seized a 124 properties related to the Heera Group’s activities.
UAE investors should take note of this and analysts, including Farhat Ali Khan, from Century Maxim International, are using this case as a that “moral of the story” when it comes to investments in the UAE:
The Heera scam serves as a stark reminder for all of us to conduct thorough research before making any investments in the UAE, as Khan noted.
