Mumbai: Four, including two lawyers, cheat over 150 of Rs 3.75 cr

The Arnala police and Crime Branch Unit III of MBVV police apprehended the gang on Tuesday. Pic/Hanif Patel

A gang of four, two of whom are lawyers, has been busted for allegedly cheating more than 150 people across Mumbai, Thane and Palghar of Rs 3.75 crore by promising them flats seized by banks at low cost. Their racket was busted by the MBVV police on Tuesday, and the gang members were apprehended.

According to the police, the gang operated luxurious offices in various locations and with different names, and hired fresh graduate students to work as telecallers. They procured details of prospective buyers from websites that deal with buying and selling real estate. The telecallers lured buyers by offering cheap properties.

Saheb Husain Shaikh is a practising lawyer; (right) Parvez Dastagir Shaikh and his partner, Hina Iqbal Chudesra. Pic/Hanif Patel

The last office opened by the gang was named ‘Bidders Winners' and was located in Virar. One of the buyers trapped by the gang was Piyushkumar Diwan, 58. The gang members identified themselves as Praveen Nanavre, Nitin Sharma, Rahul Bhat, and Alayda Shah and charged Diwan Rs 80 lakh for a flat seized by the bank. They closed the office and disappeared after taking the money. Diwan filed a complaint in this regard at Arnala police station on March 28, 2022.

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MBVV's Arnala police, Crime Branch Unit III under the guidance of Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Avinash Ambure and Unit III's Senior Inspector Pramod Badhak worked on the case.

Many names

Questioning of the accused revealed that they also fleeced people in Mumbai and Thane districts using the same modus operandi. Their offices in Thane and Azad Maidan were named ‘Land Loader' and ‘Patil Digital' respectively.

Just like their companies, the gang also maintained different names. Rahul Bhat's original name is Parvez Dastagir Shaikh, and his other aliases include Peter Sikwera and Asif Sayyed. The 31-year-old is a Mira Road resident.

Nitin Sharma's real name is Saheb Husain Shaikh, and his aliases include Prashant Bansal and Sohel Shaikh. The 28-year-old is a Bhayandar resident.

Alayada Shah's real name is Hina Iqbal Chudesra while her other alias is Hina Sayyed. She is a resident of Kashimira.

"Parvez and Saheb were the masterminds of the racket. Saheb continued to practise law at various courts in the city. Hina, who is in a relationship with Parvez, is a graduate and speaks fluent English. She used to act as a manager at the offices," said an officer privy to the investigation.

One case each has been registered against the gang at three police stations - Arnala under MBVV police, Azad Maidan under Mumbai police, and Chitalsar Manpada under Thane police. The accused have been booked for cheating and forgery.

"We arrested the accused on Tuesday and handed them for further investigation to the Arnala police," said senior inspector Pramod Badhak of Crime Branch Unit III.

Standfirst
According to the police, the gang operated luxurious offices in various locations and with different names, and hired fresh graduate students to work as telecallers. They procured details of prospective buyers from websites that deal with buying and selling real estate. The telecallers lured buyers by offering cheap properties