Cameroonian arrested over "black dollar" fraud in India

A Cameroonian and a Congolese have been arrested for cheating several Delhi-based businessmen of crores posing as business delegates during the India-Africa summit. They had promised to invest one million dollars into their businesses.

The incident came to the fore when a businessman, Aditya Bondwal, told the police he was cheated of Rs 80 lakh  (Rs 1 LAKH is equivalent to 100 000 Indian rupees approximately 1,497 USD)  lakh by a Cameroonian and a Congolese on the pretext of investing in a business to produce earthmoving equipment.

The police revealed that the accused, Kamleu Nya Alain (42) and Mwanza Nawej Yesh (42), had introduced themselves as confidantes of the president of Cameroon and had come to India for business opportunities. Bondwal said that they told him that their bank accounts had been frozen when the president was jailed. As a result they needed some means to bring in the money to India.

The accused had claimed that they would bring dollar bills dipped in a solution that would turn them into black pieces of paper to avoid customs. This would later be turned back into dollars after dipping them in another solution once they pass through the customs check. They had even called Bondwal to a five star hotel to demonstrate the use of the solution.

The men initially asked Bondwal for Rs 50 lakh as security money for bringing the solution. A few days later they asked for another Rs 30 lakh claiming that the money was seized by the customs. Once Bondwal paid the money the men went off the radar.

A manhunt was carried out and the men were traced to a hideout in south Delhi and arrested. They admitted that Yesh had earlier been arrested in Tiruchirappalli and Chennai for travelling without a passport or visa. Police have recovered Rs 25,000 from them.