ED arrests Rs 3,000 crore Heera Group scam accused Nowhera Shaik

Hyderabad: Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Hyderabad Zonal Office sleuths arrested Heera Group scam accused Nowhera Shaik on Thursday in Gurgaon and was produced before the court on Friday in Hyderabad.

She was arrested under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 in the case of Heera Group and others in a matter related to defrauding investors.

She was thereafter brought to Hyderabad immediately and produced before Hon’ble PMLA Court, Hyderabad late night on 21/05/2026 and has been remanded to judicial custody.

ED initiated investigation on the basis of multiple FIRs registered by Telangana Police and Andhra Pradesh Police against Nowhera Shaik, Molly Thomas, Biju Thomas and Heera Group of companies by aggrieved depositors across the country against Nowhera Shaik for defrauding 1,72,114 investors of more than Rs. 3000 Crore.

During investigation by ED, it was learnt that deposits were collected by Nowhera Shaikh from investors across India on the pretext of investment in Heera Group of Companies by offering huge returns of around 36% per annum, and thereafter failed to return their profits/principal amounts. Nowhera Shaik and related persons diverted the depositors ’funds to their personal accounts through company bank accounts for wrongful gain and amassed huge movable and immovable properties by utilizing illegally gained money.

During investigation, ED identified various properties purchased from the Proceeds of Crime and attached the same under the provisions of PMLA, 2002. Nowhera Shaik had a petition before the Supreme Court and tried to derail the ongoing investigation by putting wrong facts before the Supreme Court, said ED sources. She was successful in delaying the ongoing investigation by getting orders from the Court on the wrong facts. Further, during the course of hearing before the Court she dared to mislead by giving wrong affidavit that one C.K.Moula Sharif was ready to purchase the properties worth Rs 580 Crore and produced some bank account related documents in support of her claim, however, the Court has observed that the said person was not having any funds in the Bank Account mentioned in the affidavit and accordingly ordered for contempt proceedings against Moula Sharif.

During the course of investigation, Nowhera Shaik had sold some confirmed attached properties of ED by giving wrong affidavit before the respective Tahsildar/ Revenue Officials and generated further Proceeds of Crime, accordingly, for such offence FIR was registered against her. All such facts were brought to the notice of Supreme Court by ED on different occasions by filing Status Report and the Court has viewed all these facts seriously. For the first time the Supreme Court gave orders in favour of ED, to initiate auction of all the attached properties prior to trial and confiscation orders of the PMLA court and return the investor’s money through SFIO.

The Supreme Court had also directed Nowhera Shaik to co-operate with ED in the ongoing auction proceedings and execute Sale Deed for the properties registered by her in her name or in the name of her associates by utilizing Proceeds of Crime or crime money. ED had initiated auction proceedings and some of the properties were successfully auctioned fetching almost Rs. 122 Crore.

The Special Court had also cancelled her bail granted in this matter. ED officials made efforts to trace and apprehend her at known addresses in Hyderabad, Bangalore, however, she was not found there, and it was learnt that she was absconding to evade arrest. Based on inputs, ED made efforts to apprehend her from Bangalore, however, she was not found there. Subsequently, ED developed intelligence through local sources and got input that Nowhera Shaik was hiding in Gurugram, Haryana, under a fake identity using forged documents and was accompanied by one Sameer Khan, her associate.

Acting swiftly on the said intelligence input, officers of ED, along with Haryana Police officials traced her location alongwith vehicle used by her. A joint operation was conducted at the location and Nowhera Shaik was successfully apprehended from AIRBNB property in Sector-45, Gurugram, where she was staying on the Aadhar Card issued in the name of Shaik Khamar Jahan alongwith Sameer Khan, her associate. In compliance of the Warrant of Arrest issued by the Special Court under PMLA, she was arrested and brought to Hyderabad immediately and produced before PMLA Court, Hyderabad.