The NRI Coastal police have arrested five men and a woman from Kolhapur for allegedly duping several people by promising them government jobs.
The accused had cheated around 30 people by promising them jobs in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, the Forest Department, ONGC and the Railways, an official said.
The accused have been identified as Sanjay Gadekar (51), Krushnat Shete (50), Bhikaji Bhosale (45), Namdev Patil (40), Jaisingh Patil (38), and Sneha Satpute (33). The police said the accused collected ₹10.50 lakh from three victims and gave them forged appointment letters.
Mr. Patil and Ms. Satpute, the main accused, opened an office in Satra Plaza in Vashi in 2017 and hired the others to find prospective clients. In October 2020, Ulwe residents Kishor Gawli and his sister Varsha Pawar filed a complaint that the accused had duped them of ₹10 lakh. “The accused fled from Vashi and changed their locations. We tracked them and in December-end, we received a tip-off that they had rented a flat in Kharghar,” senior police inspector Ravindra Patil said.
The police arrested the accused and seized forged letterheads, stamps, and rubber stamps of various government departments from the flat. The accused, who have cases of forgery and cheating registered against them in Kolhapur, have been remanded in police custody till January 13.
“Only ₹1.26 lakh remains in their bank account. It is evident from their transactions that they cheated at least 30 people who had paid them ₹2 lakh each. We are now tracing all the victims,” Mr. Patil said.
