Mumbai cops bust inter-state gang involved in cheating bizmen; three held

Mumbai Polices crime branch claimed to have busted an inter-state gang by arresting three men who allegedly duped businessmen of several lakhs by arranging meetings in posh hotels under the pretext of offering them business opportunities, an official said on Wednesday.The gang members used to contact potential targets and convince them to come for a business meeting to clinch attractive deals.

Mumbai Police's crime branch claimed to have busted an inter-state gang by arresting three men who allegedly duped businessmen of several lakhs by arranging meetings in posh hotels under the pretext of offering them business opportunities, an official said on Wednesday.

The gang members used to contact potential targets and convince them to come for a 'business' meeting to clinch attractive deals. The accused persons are identified as Majib Abdul Khan alias Mannu (44), a resident of Uttar Pradesh, Mayank Pradeep Sharma alias Laddu (22), a resident of Delhi, and Akash Dwarkaprasad Agrawal alias Kabir (19), who lives in Thane, the official said, adding that some more persons were involved in the crime.

They were arrested by Unit 8 of the Mumbai Crime Branch, he said.

The fraud came to light when a businessman from Mumbai was allegedly cheated by the gang of USD 25,000 ( Rs 21 lakh) on February 27, the official said.

''One of the three members of the gang had contacted the businessman saying he works in the film business and required USD 25,000 to send actors abroad. He called the businessman to a five-star hotel on February 27 and took him to a room. ''After collecting money, the accused person pretended to have received a call on his mobile phone and walked out of the room,'' he said quoting the FIR.

Subsequently, the accused person stopped attending the calls of the businessman, the official said.

Realising that he was cheated, the victim lodged a complaint with Vakola police station and a case was registered on the charge of cheating. During the investigation, the crime branch found that the gang had cheated businessmen in other cities also by luring them with the promise of business deals, the official said. ''In one such case, a forex trader was duped of Rs 30 lakh on January 25 in the Mumbai Airport area,'' he said.

The crime branch sleuths traced the trio using technical analysis and traditional investigation, he said. ''Their interrogation unravelled the network of the inter-state gang. Efforts are on to nab the remaining members of the gang,'' the official added.