Four held for cheating builder of Rs 40 lakh in Thane district

The police in Maharashtra's Thane district have apprehended four persons in connection with the case of cheating a builder of Rs 40 lakh and arrested the complainant for illegal possession of firearms, an official said on Tuesday.

The case of cheating came to light after officials of the anti-extortion cell (AEC) intercepted the car of builder Surendra Patil (50) on November 25 and recovered two unlicensed pistols and seven cartridges, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Shivraj Patil said.

A case under the Arms Act was registered against the builder, he said.

During the interrogation, Patil revealed that he had gone to a farmhouse in Dombivili after four persons allegedly promised to give him counterfeit notes with a face value of Rs 1.6 crore if he gave them Rs 40 lakh.

Patil claimed that he had carried the unlicensed weapons with him for protection, the official said.

At the farmhouse, some accused posing as policemen "raided" the farmhouse and snatched the bag containing Rs 40 lakh from Patil before fleeing the scene, he said. After the revelation, the police registered a cheating case and launched a probe, the official said.

Police teams were formed, and four accused who fled with the cash were apprehended from Bhiwandi on November 26, senior inspector Shekar Bhagde said.

The police have managed to recover Rs 14.35 lakh from the accused, he said.

The police have arrested Swapnil Dashrath Jadhav (26), Adesh Motiram Bhoir (35), Sachin Baban Jadhav (35) and Akshay Tukaram Gaikwad (30) in the cheating case, the official said.