Mumbai: The N M Joshi Marg police station in Mumbai has apprehended a suspect from Surat on allegations of defrauding a businessman. The accused purportedly received gold valued at Rs 1.84 crore from the complainant under the pretext of crafting designer jewelry. Identified as Gautam Waugh (32), the individual was detained by Mumbai Police in collaboration with the Economic Crimes Branch of Surat Police.
A police official disclosed that Waugh has been arrested, presented before the court, and placed in police custody as efforts are underway to recover the gold worth Rs 1.84 crore that he had acquired from the complainant.
As per police reports, the complainant, Romil Sanghvi (45), an administrative manager at Prizm Enterprises Private Limited, filed a report with the police. Prizm Enterprises Private Limited specializes in producing gold and diamond-studded jewelry for the past 24 years, supplying these items to various jewelry outlets.
Sanghvi alleged that in 2021, an individual named Gautam Waugh approached the company claiming to represent MS Jewellers in Surat, Gujarat, where gold jewelry is manufactured. Waugh purported that his company could transform raw gold into jewelry at a reasonable cost.
Upon Waugh's request for collaboration, Prizm Enterprises Private Limited conducted inquiries within the market regarding Waugh's company, receiving positive feedback from various sources.
Consequently, Prizm Enterprises Private Limited entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Waugh's company, stipulating that all job orders received from Prizm Enterprises Private Limited must be completed within seven days.
Between February 2021 and April 2022, Prizm Enterprises Private Limited entrusted Waugh with the task of crafting jewelry from raw gold, amounting to a total worth of 1.84 crore rupees.
However, despite receiving the gold, Waugh allegedly failed to deliver the promised jewelry or return the gold to the complainant. Numerous attempts by the complainant to retrieve the gold from Waugh were reportedly rebuffed. Upon realizing the apparent deception, Prizm Enterprises Private Limited lodged a formal complaint with the police, prompting an investigation into the matter.
