Torres fraud: Bail pleas of Tausif Riyaz, Ukrainian actor rejected

MUMBAI: A special MPID (Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors) court on Friday rejected the bail applications of Tausif Riyaz, the alleged Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Platinum Hern Private Limited, the holding company of the Torres Jewellery chain, and of Ukrainian actor Armen Ataian, who allegedly helped the prime accused set up their the jewellery brand in India.

The order comes days after the same court rejected the bail applications of three prime accused arrested in connection with the multi-crore fraud that duped thousands of small investors.

In his bail plea, Riyaz had claimed that he was neither the CEO nor a shareholder in the Torres holding company. He claimed he was a whistleblower, who had shared information about the fraud with the police. He also claimed he was no more than a consultant for the jewellery brand, and had been falsely implicated by the prime accused.

Police, however, suspect Riyaz was pivotal in helping the prime accused, most of them Ukranian, set up a base in India. Riyaz, however, maintained that he had e-mailed the police commissioners of Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai in January 2025, to inform them of the fraudulent investment schemes floated by Torres Jewellery. He had submitted that the prime accused were targeting him by naming him as a primary accused through a social media campaign, adding that he left Mumbai after receiving threats from the masterminds of the scam.

Riyaz, who goes by the alias John Carter, was arrested from a hotel in Lonavala in the last week of January, after being on the run for three weeks. Following his interrogation, the name of a small-time Ukrainian actor, Armen Ataian, came up.

The actor too alleged that he had been falsely implicated in the case. Ataian, who played minor roles in Indian films and web series, was arrested from Madh in Mumbai on January 28, for allegedly helping the Ukrainians set up Platinum Hern, register the company, and open jewellery stores across the Mumbai metropolitan region.

In his bail plea, the actor has alleged that his role was limited to arranging a meeting of some Ukrainian nationals with Riyaz, adding that he had not been named in the First Information Report (FIR). Both Riyaz and Ataian are represented by advocate Vivek Tiwari and advocate Trupen Rathod, respectively.

Special Public Prosecutor Suryawanshi JN submitted that Ataian had falsely claimed to be a citizen of India and that he was in fact Ukrainian. The prosecution said that Riyaz played an important role in converting cash into cryptocurrency. It is alleged that the main accused allegedly transferred more than ₹200 crore outside India through USDT, a cryptocurrency.

The fraud, which surfaced on January 6, is being investigated by the Economic Offences Wing of the Mumbai Police. Ten individuals have been arrested so far, all of them currently in judicial custody.

Apart from these suspects, the EOW has issued Lookout Circulars and Blue-Corner Notices for several Ukrainians and a Turkish national, the alleged masterminds of the Torres scam, who are believed to have fled the country.