PATIALA: Former Punjab Police IG Amar Singh Chahal , 66, is battling for life after a self-inflicted gunshot to the chest at his Patiala home on Monday. Police say he shot himself with his gunman’s licenced revolver.This is the second such incident involving an IPS officer in the region after Haryana ADG Y Puran Kumar shot himself dead with his gunman’s pistol at his Chandigarh home in Oct.A12-page handwritten note found on the scene details how ex-IG Chahal was cheated of Rs 8.1 crore in a “highly sophisticated” online investment fraud that operated through WhatsApp and Telegram under the name ‘F-777 DBS Wealth Equity Research Group’.
It falsely claimed regulatory approvals and links with well-known financial institutions, the note says.
Police are investigating the allegations. It’s a disturbing indicator of how deeply such scams have penetrated society and can trap even those who are seemingly aware of the baits and lures.Patiala SP Palwinder Singh Cheema said one of Chahal’s friends alerted police that he may have attempted suicide after getting a message from him.
Cyber thugs posed as wealth mgmt advisors: Former IPS officer in noteA police team rushed to his house in ‘26-Acre’ locality around 1.45pm and found him unconscious, with a bullet wound to the chest. A revolver lay close by. He was breathing, say police sources. Chahal’s son and daughter-in-law were in another room during the incident, say police.“Chahal is undergoing treatment in hospital and his condition is critical,” said Patiala SSP Varun Sharma.
Late evening, Cheema said Chahal had undergone surgery and was on recovery mode but the next 24 hours will be crucial. “Our immediate priority is his treatment. We are also preserving evidence and examining the allegations mentioned in the note,” said Cheema.Police said Chahal, a 1990batch IPS officer, had not filed any complaint regarding the alleged fraud. According to officials who have seen the note, Chahal wrote that he was cheated by cyber criminals who posed as wealth management advisors.Chahal describes in the note how fraudsters posing as ‘senior executives and advisors’ of the firm gradually gained the confidence of investors by offering daily market tips, simulated dashboards and purportedly highreturn investment products. He alleged that the scheme progressed through multiple stages — daily trading, initial public offerings, over-thecounter trades and so-called quantitative funds — each promising escalating returns.Chahal claimed that as confidence grew, investors were encouraged to deposit larger sums while “planted participants” vouched for the scheme’s authenticity whenever doubts were raised. But when he sought to withdraw funds, he was asked to pay hefty service charges, taxes and membership fees, and was even coaxed into paying an alleged bribe to expedite withdrawals, says the note. Despite making repeated payments, no money was released.The former IG said that he had written to the Prime Minister, Union home minister and Union finance minister, seeking intervention. He urged authorities to constitute an SIT or hand the case to a central agency, arguing that only a specialised probe could “dismantle what the nationwide cyber-fraud network”.He has listed multiple bank accounts through which transfers were allegedly made and claimed that while about Rs 1 crore was his own money, more than Rs 7 crore was borrowed from friends and relatives.
In his note, he expressed deep remorse and fear about the financial and emotional impact on his family, while repeatedly stating that no one else should be held responsible for his actions.The note also appealed for protection and assistance for his family and requested that creditors refrain from pressuring them.Chahal had preserved screenshots of dashboards, transaction records and chat histories, which he referenced in the note. Investigators are tracing the alleged transactions and examining the digital evidence he cited.Residents of Patiala and former colleagues described Chahal as a capable officer, who empathised with farmers’ issues and concerns of the Sikh community.