Bengaluru police have detained a couple for allegedly cheating several people through dubious part-time job offers in northeast Bengaluru’s Devanahalli.

The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar and Arathi. The police are tracking their bank accounts after around 15 people approached them alleging that they had been cheated of lakhs of rupees.

According to the police, there are a few more accused in the case whose roles are being ascertained. The group allegedly distributed pamphlet advertisements along with morning newspapers publicising the scheme.

According to the police, the accused presented the job as packaging work. Interested individuals could choose between a four-month or a 12-month scheme. After selecting a scheme, they could decide how many kilograms of packaging work they wished to undertake. For each packaging slab, individuals had to make a certain deposit in return for a monthly salary. At the end of the four-month or 12-month period, the total amount received would exceed the deposit made, which was projected as the profit.

For example, if a person opted to package 200 kg per month under the 12-month scheme, the individual had to deposit ₹ 1 lakh upfront. Every month, the individual was required to package 200 kg of items and would receive an approximate monthly salary of ₹ 23,000. At the end of the year, the individual would have earned nearly double the amount invested.

A senior police officer told The Hindu the accused would send the items and packaging materials to the individuals, who were asked to complete the work at their homes. The accused would subsequently collect the packaged items.

“We have questioned the accused, and they claim it is a legitimate packaging business and that they have been paying the stakeholders. We are ascertaining their claims,” the officer said.

The case came to light when one of the investors did not receive the promised salary for several months. Police have registered an FIR under Sections 318 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with cheating, and 316, which deals with criminal breach of trust. They have also invoked the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019.