Pune Crime: Caretaker Dupes Elderly Doctor Of ₹2 Crore, Case Registered At Baner Police Station

Pune: An 82-year-old retired paediatrician was allegedly cheated of nearly ₹2 crore by her caretaker, the caretaker’s son and daughter-in-law, who allegedly gained her trust and then withdrew money from her bank accounts and stole gold and silver jewellery.

According to the complaint, the accused allegedly misappropriated ₹1.45 crore from the elderly woman’s bank accounts and stole around 85 tolas of gold and five kilograms of silver items, collectively valued at approximately ₹50 lakh.

Baner police have arrested the three accused, identified as Madhavi Shishikant Pawar, her son Joshua Shishikant Pawar and daughter-in-law Bhagyashree Joshua Pawar.

The alleged fraud took place between February 2026 and September 15, 2026, according to the complaint. Following the incident, Ketan Pandit Khandekar (47), a resident of Baner, filed a complaint at the Baner police station.

According to police, Khandekar’s 82-year-old mother had worked as a paediatrician and, due to her advanced age, was living at home. In September 2024, Khandekar appointed Madhavi as her caretaker.

Initially, she took good care of the elderly woman and gradually gained the family’s trust. After a redevelopment agreement involving the family’s ancestral property in the Deccan area resulted in substantial deposits being credited to their bank accounts, Madhavi allegedly persuaded the elderly woman to add her name as a joint account holder in some of the accounts.

The complaint alleges that Madhavi, along with her son and daughter-in-law, subsequently threatened the elderly woman and her son with false criminal cases. They allegedly took them to banks and forced them to withdraw around ₹1,45,47,000 from various bank accounts.

They have also been accused of stealing approximately 85 tolas of gold jewellery and five kilograms of silver articles belonging to the elderly woman. The stolen property is estimated to be worth around ₹50 lakh.

The complaint further alleges that, in recent days, the accused had been pressuring the complainant and his mother to execute a will in their favour concerning their property and bank accounts.

Alleged purchase of vehicles

During an examination of bank statements, investigators allegedly found that Joshua had received money through various transactions. According to the complaint, Joshua, who had previously worked as an autorickshaw driver, allegedly purchased two-wheelers and four-wheelers using money obtained through the alleged fraud.

Chandrashekhar Sawant, senior police inspector of Baner police station, told the Free Press Journal that the accused had been working as caretakers for several years and had gained the family’s trust.

“Taking advantage of that trust, the accused allegedly withdrew a huge amount of money by threatening the elderly woman and telling her that no one else would take care of her apart from them. We are investigating the financial transactions, the alleged theft of jewellery and the role of each accused in the case. Accordingly, action will be taken,” he said.