Mumbai builder who duped 27 persons of Rs 40 crore in EOW custody

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The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police on Sunday took Jayesh Tanna, a builder accused of duping homebuyers who invested in a Goregaon project, into custody. Tanna had been lodged in the Arthur Road jail in connection with previous cases against him. The EOW case against Tanna is the ninth and latest wherein 27 people were defrauded of a collective Rs 40 crore.

Tanna, 56, is the director of Sai Siddhi Developers. According to the police, Tanna, along with two other directors of the company, lured victims and defrauded them. "We have arrested Tanna over his alleged involvement in the scam. Nine cases have been registered against him, and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) has been invoked," said an officer from the EOW.

Police said Tanna is facing FIRs alleging fraud across the city. In the previous cases, it is suspected that Tanna sold flats to third parties without the consent of the flat owners. The ninth FIR was registered against him in October in connection with the Goregaon Pearl Co-operative Housing Society.

According to the FIR, Bhavin Barot sought to buy a flat and visited Goregaon Pearl Co-operative Housing Society, a redevelopment project by Tanna. Barot booked a flat worth Rs 1.07 crore, with Tanna promising possession in January 2013. However, Barot did not receive possession even in 2016. Barot was then informed of disputes between Tanna and the tenants, which were causing the delay. In 2018, the redevelopment deal was terminated, leading to the housing society filing an arbitration case against Tanna.

"In 2012, Sai Siddhi Developers intended to redevelop a project called ‘Goregaon Pearl Co-operative Housing Society'. Since then, the complainant and other victims invested money, but they did not receive possession of the flats within the promised time. The victims did not get possession, and the accused misused the amount they invested," said the EOW officer.

Tanna was in Arthur Road jail in relation to eight previous cases against him. The EOW sought his custody for further investigations into bank transactions. The Esplanade court granted EOW to take Tanna into custody for five days.

The EOW has booked Tanna under Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating), and 448 (trespassing) of the IPC, and sections of MCOCA. In the course of the probe against Tanna, the court had also appointed a team of lawyers to serve as the court commissioner and directed it to take possession of his properties.