Wethersfield Woman Involved in Debt Elimination Scheme is Sentenced

John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that URMILA SRI THAKUR, also known as Urmila Buddhu-Thakur and Indro Buddhu-Thakur, 73, of Wethersfield, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to four years of probation, the first four months of which THAKUR must serve in home confinement, for her role in a fraudulent debt elimination scheme.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from 2009 to June 2012, THAKUR’s former husband, Deowraj “Deo” Buddhu and their daughter, Sunita Buddhu, sold a debt elimination “program” to vulnerable individuals through various businesses, including Paradise Consulting Service, Hema, Inc., and Secured Redemption.  In exchange for substantial fees, Deo Buddhu told victims about a little-known government fund that could be used to pay off their mortgages and other debts.  In fact, no such fund exists.  Buddhu instructed his victims to stop making payments on their mortgages, credit cards and other debts, and to stop paying their property taxes.  He also provided his victims with fictitious promissory notes, which he called “bonds,” as well as other frivolous documentation, and advised his victims to use them to pay their debts.

On June 12, 2012, the day after Deo Buddhu’s arrest, THAKUR withdrew $75,000 from a certificate of deposit account that contained funds from the scheme.  She also obtained several cashier’s checks, including one for $50,000 made payable to THAKUR, which she thereafter negotiated using accounts in the name of SDK SYS Solutions and TRK Consulting Services.

Judge Thompson ordered THAKUR to pay restitution of $335,072, which is the amount attributable to the underlying fraudulent debt elimination scheme.

On August 18, 2017, THAKUR pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering.

Deo Buddhu and Sunita Buddhu were previously convicted in Hartford federal court.

This matter was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Pierpont, Jr. and Liam Brennan.