Navi Mumbai: CBD Belapur police are on look out for a man who posed as constable with Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and cheated a contractor and his friend of Rs 80 lakh by promising a land belonging to forest department in Satara.
The complainant Ptrasad Ghorpade, 25, a labour contractor by profession and a resident of Kolhapur had met the accused Sunil Dhumal in the year 2019 at his hometown. Dhumal had introduced himself as a constable with CBI and had showed an identity card as well.
“Dhumal had also made the complainant believe that he was selected as a ‘high commission officer’ by Indian government. He used various fake identity cards and documents to win the trust the complainant and his friend,” senior police inspector Giridhar Gore from CBD Belapur police station said. Dhumal used to always roam around in a government vehicle with red beacon light.
Dhumal told Ghorpade that the forest department had gifted him a land in Satara which he could sell. Dhumal presented a document and stated it to be court order from Dindoshi court stating that the land belongs to Dhumal. Along with that, he also produced a fake no objection certificate of forest department stating that the said plot has been given to Dhumal and he is free to sell it.
Believing the claims of the accused, Ghorpade approached another friend, Prasad Jain to pitch in with the money. The trio had several meetings in Navi Mumbai and the first cash transaction happened in CBD Belapur. From the year 2021 to Dceember 2023, Ghorpade and Jain collectively paid Rs 80 lakh to Dhumal.
After the payment was made, Ghorpade started asking for the final order of the land transfer in their name from Dhumal. Dhumal started giving evasive replies and later stopped taking his calls. Ghoarpade then enquired with the CBI office in Belapur and found that Dhumal was not a constable with CBI and was only a driver on contract basis.
He then verified the ‘documents’ from court and forest department and found it to be fake. After realising the fraud, he approached CBD Belapur police and registered a case for cheating and forgery. “The accused is absconding and we are hunting for him. We suspect that he might have cheated many others as well in similar manner,” Gore added.
