Mumbai: Woman arrested for cheating couple

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The Malad police have arrested a 32-year-old woman for allegedly cheating a couple and their friends of Rs 35 lakh of the Rs 59 lakh that she had collected by promising them seven to eight per cent monthly returns on their investment in her business. The arrested woman, Soumya Rakesh Bharadwaj, was taken into custody two months after the FIR was registered by a 34-year-old woman, who resides in Chincholi Bandar, Malad West.

According to police sources, the victim met Bharadwaj through her husband's friend. Her husband's friend had introduced Bharadwaj as his fiancée in 2023. The two women became friends, and Bharadwaj allegedly lured the couple into investing in her garment and supermarket business, promising them a monthly return of seven to eight per cent on their investment.

The couple and other family friends and relatives invested approximately Rs 59 lakh between June 5, 2023, and November 2023. Bharadwaj initially provided fixed returns on the investment, but she later stopped making payments.

When the woman and her relatives demanded their money back, Bharadwaj issued them cheques, but they all bounced due to insufficient funds. The victim also alleged that the cheques bore different signatures.

In the meantime, Bharadwaj returned about Rs 25 lakh to her victims but then stopped making any further payments. "When the woman victim pressured Bharadwaj to return the remaining amount, Bharadwaj arrogantly said she did not have the money and neither did she have a garment or supermarket business. She also threatened to falsely implicate them in a drug case if they continued to pressure her. The woman then approached Malad police and filed an FIR," said an officer.

Based on the information, an FIR was registered against Bharadwaj on June 7, 2024, under various sections of the IPC. Under the guidance of deputy commissioner of police Anand Bhoite and senior police Inspector Ravindra Adhane, assistant police inspector Mahesh Mundhe led the investigation and apprehended Bharadwaj on Friday.

During the investigation, it was revealed that most of the money given by the complainant, her husband, and their friends was transferred to the account of Bharadwaj's fiancée, Isak Diwan, who reportedly runs an advertising company. The police have summoned Diwan for questioning, and if his involvement is confirmed, appropriate action will be taken, said another officer. Bharadwaj was arrested, produced before the court, and remanded to police custody, the officer said.

Rs 35 lakh

The sum owed by the accused to the couple

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‘When the woman victim pressured Bharadwaj to return the remaining amount, Bharadwaj arrogantly said she did not have the money and neither did she have a garment or supermarket business'

A police officer, Malad police station