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Qatar Airways pilot remains elusive as cops wait at Bengaluru airport

BENGALURU: A Dubai-based pilot of Qatar Airways who’s an accused in the Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG) multi-crore cheating case continues to elude Bengaluru police.


Sources said a team from Cubbon Park police, who are probing the fraud and were assured by the airline that Vishal Somanna, the accused pilot, would be landing in Bengaluru, rushed to Kempegowda International Airport last week only to return empty-handed as he never arrived.



The sources, however, declined to reveal the exact day on which he was to arrive. Vishal is one of the accused in the Rs 62-crore cheating case in which a former deputy general manager (corporate finance and treasury) of MEMG, Sandeep Gururaj, his wife Charusmitha PS and two other women have already been arrested.

Gururaj allegedly moved Rs 62 crore from various accounts of the privately-held conglomerate. Police suspect the money was transferred to Vishal, who invested it in several establishments. He’s the brother of Meera Chengappa, who has also been arrested in connection with the fraud. The siblings’ mother is the fourth accused who’s behind bars.

Vishal, a business management graduate, worked as model before taking up aviation as a career. Police said Sandeep transferred the money to Vishal, who invested it in several sectors, including real estate. He also bought two estates in Kodagu with the amount. In January, a city civil court had denied bail to Vishal’s mother and sister after the special public prosecutor expressed apprehensions that the family may fly out of the country given the pilot was abroad.

Police sources said they have already frozen Vishal’s bank accounts in Doha and investments in Dubai . They were confident of nabbing him soon as they’re in contact with Qatar Airways and authorities. Qatar Airways could not be reached for comments.

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