Fraud at Dubai’s Fortune Group of Hotels – Accused sent to 3-day police custody

Team Udayavani, Oct 14, 2024, 10:56 AM IST

Udupi district police arrested a man accused of embezzling more than Rs 2.5 crore at Dubai’s Fortune Group of Hotels.

The accused, Nagesh Poojary, 31, a resident of Barkur, was arrested near Nanjangud in Mysuru district. Poojary had been working as an accountant at one of the hotels owned by Praveen Kumar Shetty, a businessman of Udupi origin currently based in Dubai.

Poojary was produced before the judicial magistrate, who sent him to police custody until October 16 for further investigation. His bail, initially granted by the JMFC court in Brahmavar, had been revoked by both the district sessions court and the Karnataka High Court. The police, after an extended search, managed to apprehend him while he was in hiding.

Background of the Case

Nagesh Poojary had joined one of the hotels under the Fortune Group of Hotels as an accountant in Dubai. He was accused of misappropriating over Rs 2.5 crore from the hotel. Following a complaint lodged by hotel manager Sunil Kumar, a case was registered at the Brahmavar police station. The case was later transferred to Udupi’s CEN station for further investigation.

Earlier, Poojary had filed a petition in the High Court seeking a stay on the investigation, but the court had rejected his plea last year. He later applied for anticipatory bail in Kundapura’s additional district and sessions court, but the court refused his request.

Following this, Poojary managed to obtain bail from the Brahmavara JMFC court by withholding the previous orders. However, the state government challenged this decision in the district court, which subsequently revoked his bail. Since then, he had gone into hiding until his recent arrest.