The Wadal Truck Terminal (WTT) police arrested a 53-year-old man for allegedly duping a jeweller to the tune of Rs 20 lakh. The accused, in connivance with Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) 'officials', promised the complainer a shop in Pratiksha Nagar, Sion, and duped him for the last five years. The police have named a couple of personal assistants of the MHADA 'officials' as accused in the case, but they are yet to be arrested.
After the complainer Tejaram Mali, 38, approached the WTT police, they registered an offence of cheating and forgery last week after a primary enquiry. Later, Balaraj Agale, HR of a private developer of MHADA, was arrested.
According to Mali's statement to the police, Agale had promised him a shop in Pratiksha Nagar for Rs 20 lakh in 2016. Agale, on multiple occasions, took Mali to the MHADA headquarters in Bandra and introduced him to the officials there. They also promised him a shop, alleged Mali in his statement to the police.
On multiple occasions, he had paid money to Agale in the MHADA building in front of the 'officials', where they showed him a file of the shop in his name, alleged Mali. "In July 2017, Agale also gave him a rent receipt of Rs 54,000 of the shop and also collected the rent of the same amount. A month later, he again took over Rs 1 lakh and gave the rent receipt. He continued to take money for other formalities, stated Mali in the FIR, the copy of which is in the possession of the Free Press Journal.
“Whenever I asked for the shop, he used to give me evasive answers. A year later, when I told him to return the money, he gave me a cheque of Rs 8 lakh, but the cheque bounced. For the last couple of years, I was behind him for the money, but he continued to avoid it. Finally, I lodged a complaint , said Mali.
We have arrested one of the accused for cheating and forgery, said Shailesh Pasalwad, senior inspector of WTT police station.
