Mumbai: The Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has once again arrested Purushottam Chavan Soon, husband of Maharashtra cadre IPS officer Rashmi Karandikar, in connection with a second case of financial fraud.
Chavan is accused of cheating six individuals of ₹7.42 crore by falsely promising them plots of land at concessional rates on government and Bombay Port Trust (BPT) land. EOW Sources said to FPJ, We have applied for production warrant in the second case.We will get custody tomarrow.
According to the EOW, Chavan, who was already in judicial custody in connection with a separate ₹24 crore fraud case, was taken into custody again on Tuesday after the EOW obtained court permission for a fresh arrest related to the new charges.
Investigators revealed that Chavan, along with associates, promised plots in Bhiwandi, Pune, Panvel, and Sewree, claiming they were located on BPT and government-owned land. He lured multiple victims by offering the plots at highly subsidized rates, convincing them through forged documents and fabricated agreements.
In some cases, Chavan allegedly promised victims contracts to supply uniforms and T-shirts to the Nashik Police Training Centre, using this claim to extract large sums of money from them. Chavan’s initial arrest was in connection with a ₹24 crore fraud, and he had been lodged in judicial custody since then. The fresh arrest comes after further investigation revealed his involvement in this second multi-crore land scam.
The EOW has stated that more victims and additional fraudulent deals may surface as the investigation progresses. Officials are also probing whether Chavan used his connections, including his proximity to influential figures, to gain the trust of victims.
“Accused Chavan prepared forged documents and agreements to win the confidence of victims and took crores of rupees from them under the pretense of allotting land owned by the government or the Bombay Port Trust,” said an EOW officer.
The fraudulent activities reportedly took place over the last few years. The EOW is continuing its probe to determine the extent of Chavan’s network, the origin of forged documents, and whether more high-value scams were orchestrated by him.
This case has sparked renewed concerns about misuse of official proximity and power in influencing financial frauds, especially when family members of serving officials are involved.
