Thane Man Defrauds Jeweller of Rs 27.5 Lakh with Fake Cheque: Caught by Police

The Thane Police in Maharashtra arrested a man for allegedly defrauding a local jeweller of Rs 27.5 lakh after gaining his trust with a fraudulent cheque, officials said on Sunday, reported the PTI.

The accused, a resident of the Bhayander area, befriended the 57-year-old jeweller in July through an online real estate marketplace. He won the jeweller’s confidence by handing over a cheque of Rs 66 lakh as an advance payment for the purchase of a flat, according to the PTI.

After securing the victim’s trust, the man obtained gold jewellery worth Rs 27.5 lakh from him without making any payment. He then issued a stop-payment instruction for the earlier cheque linked to the property deal, according to a police official, as per the PTI.

Following the jeweller’s complaint, Bhayander police registered a case against the accused on September 16 under Sections 318(4) (cheating) and 316(2) (criminal breach of trust) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

To evade arrest, the accused allegedly concealed his identity and frequently moved between Delhi, Noida, and Mumbai, the police said, the news agency reported. He was eventually traced to a hotel in Thane city and was arrested there on November 27, police said, adding that the man is a habitual offender, with several cheating cases registered against him in Thane and Mumbai, some dating back to the year 2000.

Meanwhile, in another incident, Mumbai Police’s Zone IV team, as part of a special fugitive search operation, has arrested four long-absconding accused persons involved in serious crimes. The accused had been on the run for periods ranging from 11 to 25 years and were traced to different districts, police said.

In the first case, Javed Yusuf Sheikh, 48, wanted in a RAK Marg police case registered for dacoity, robbery, and under the Arms Act, was re-arrested from Thane on the night of November 20. He had earlier been granted bail but failed to appear before court, following which a permanent warrant was issued against him.

The second arrest was made by Kalachowkie police in a 2014 attempt-to-murder case. The accused, Rakesh Amrutlal Pasi, who had been absconding for 11 years, was arrested in Kolhapur district on Wednesday.

In another Kalachowkie case dating back 25 years, for assaulting a group of people, the accused, Vilas Ganpat Ghorpade, was traced to Satara district and arrested around midnight on November 18.

The fourth arrest relates to a 1988 armed robbery case registered at Bhoiwada police station. The accused, Nafeez Abdul Aziz Sheikh, 61, was traced to Ghodegaon in Pune and arrested on Thursday after identity verification, Dattaray Thakur, senior police inspector, Bhoiwada, confirmed.

All four accused have been produced before the respective courts, police said, adding that the fugitive search operation under Zone IV will continue to trace more long-pending absconders.